The Brotherhood
by christibabe
Summary: Just when she thought everything was over and she could move on with her life with Ranger, Stephanie learns there are more pieces to the puzzle she solved when her best friend, Tina was kidnapped and tortured by the Whitechapel killer. This time it's not just Tina who's in danger but others close to Stephanie as well. Will she find them in time to save her friends?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** The Plum characters belong to J.E. I claim the original characters that I've come up with and the storyline. This is the sequel to The Runaway.

 **Special thanks to JenRar for her beta skills and T for being my sounding board.**

 **Chapter 1**

 **Stephanie's POV**

I looked in the mirror and took mental stock to make sure I had everything I needed. Tiny, black, barely there dress? Check. Five-inch black FMPs? Check. Little black clutch purse complete with loaded gun? Check. And the final item on the list…a wire placed under my left breast? Check.

I turned and made my way from the bedroom to the kitchen, where Kye was waiting. I'd nearly reached where he was standing when he turned and let his green-eyed gaze roam over me. I smiled when his gaze traveled back to meet my eyes and he raised an eyebrow.

I held my arms out and turned in a circle. "What do you think? Will I pass?"

Kye grinned and winked.

A husky voice from behind me said, "Babe, you're sex on legs in that thing."

I turned and smiled as Ranger joined us. "So you approve?"

He raised an eyebrow as he slowly let his gaze run over my form before returning to snare mine. A low growl sounded before he said, "If we had a choice, we'd be going back into the bedroom so I could show you just how much I approve."

I grinned. "If we went back into the bedroom, we'd never make it out of the apartment tonight."

The corner of his mouth lifted, and he said, "That's the idea. I'd have you all to myself."

A knock on the door indicated the natives were getting restless and it was time for us to get this show on the road. Kye moved over to answer the door, and Hector joined us. There was a smile on his face as his heated gaze made its way over Kye as he asked, "What's the holdup?"

Kye winked at him and replied, "I was just waiting for Stephanie and Ranger to get ready. We're all set now though."

A sharp nod was his answer as his gaze moved to me and then Ranger. "The rest are waiting in the garage."

Ranger's hand descended on my waist, and his voice was a low rumble as he said, "Let's go."

It didn't take us long to walk the short distance to the elevator. Most days we would be taking the stairs, but on the occasions that I was dressed up, Ranger always insisted on us taking the elevator. He waited till the doors closed on us and then pressed the button to take us to the garage.

I leaned back against Ranger as we made the trip down. When the doors opened, he held me in place to allow Kye and Hector to exit first, and then his hand went to my hip as we made our way over to where the rest of the group was waiting.

I noticed that Lester seemed a bit distracted, and I wondered if Tina had managed to tell him about the big surprise.

Tank handed me a file. His voice was terse as he said, "Study that. We're only going to have one shot at this, so we have to get it right."

I nodded. "Don't worry. This isn't our first dog and pony show. We'll get him."

Tank shook his head. "I don't like you being in on this one, little girl. This is a real bad guy."

My eyes narrowed. "Worse that Raje or Harper?"

He grimaced. "I see your point. I just don't like putting you out there as bait."

I lifted a shoulder. "I don't like it any more than you do. But when you take into consideration what will happen if we don't get this scumbag off the streets, what choice do we have? Besides, I have the best backup in the world. The innocent woman they pick up if we don't nab him won't."

He growled. "All right. Let's go."

We moved to our vehicles. Tank, Lester, Bobby, and Cal went in one SUV, while Hector, Kye, Ram, and Vince went in another.

Ranger led me over to the Turbo, where I sat silently beside him as he maneuvered the car to the club. I could tell that he wasn't any happier to have me involved in this than Tank was, but he trusted me to do my job. He pulled into the lot and parked at the back. We waited for the other two vehicles to arrive and for the guys to get into place before he moved the Turbo closer to the door.

I took a couple of deep breaths, readying myself for the act I was going to have to put on. We couldn't take the chance that our target wasn't out here in the lot scoping out the bar before going inside, so in order to make sure that he wouldn't be suspicious, I needed to make it look like I was having a fight with Ranger before storming out of the car and into the bar.

Ranger turned to me just before he stopped and gently squeezed my hand. "Ready, Babe?"

I nodded. Grabbing the handle, I opened the door as he jerked to a stop. I hurriedly got out of the car and screamed, "Just leave me alone if that's the way you feel about it!" Slamming the door, I rushed toward the entrance of the club and swayed just before I got there, giving the impression I'd had a couple drinks too many.

I finally made it inside the club and straightened, slowing my steps and carefully walking toward the bar. As I made my way, I noticed that Shep was already seated there and Hal and Woody were at a table not too far away. Binkie was behind the bar, and Manny was playing darts.

Taking my seat, I smiled wryly at Binkie before ordering a white Russian.

He nodded, and I suddenly felt a chill race down my spine. Seconds later I was joined at the bar by a very large man. Something about him seemed off, and I struggled with the feelings that I was experiencing as I tried to decide why I was so uneasy. Although this man wasn't as big as Prince Raje had been, I had the feeling that he was infinitely more dangerous.

I played with the ring on the third finger of my right hand, debating whether I should press the little gem that would send a signal to the guys that things weren't going as planned. A large hand descended on my knee and squeezed to the point of pain. I looked at the man responsible and fought to keep the bile down. This was a complication we didn't need. Our target would be here any moment, and this man was an unknown.

He smiled. "Ah. I see you remember me."

My finger circled the ring. The moment he'd spoken I was transported back in time.

He scowled. "I'll enjoy teaching you a lesson."

I fought to control the shaking. I couldn't let this bastard know that he'd succeeded in scaring me. My head lifted as I braced my body. My eyes narrowed as the voice from my nightmares went on to say, "It's taken us twenty years, but we've found you. Once we did, it didn't take us long to put this little plan into motion."

My voice was calm, and I gave the appearance of being in control as I said, "If I was able to out-think you when I was eight, gee… I wonder what will happen now."

He snarled. "I'm going to kill you!"

It was at that moment that our target walked into the bar.

I pressed the gem in the middle of the ring. Within seconds Hector was beside me. He motioned to Binkie and ordered a drink.

Binkie set the drink between me and the behemoth sitting beside me, and Hector reached across me to get the drink, making sure it spilled on the man sitting next to me. He stood with a roar.

Hector was on him in an instant, and I glanced around to see that the man we were after, instead of being skittish about staying, seemed to be enjoying the fight. He was so distracted, in fact, that he wasn't aware of Tank and Ranger approaching him, and they had the cuffs on him before he could even blink.

Vince and Ram were dispatched to take the man to the police station.

Ranger and Tank moved up on either side of me. Ranger's hand went to my waist as he asked, "What happened, Babe?"

I nodded to the man Hector was locked in battle with. "That's one of the men who tried to kill me when I was eight. And something he said leads me to believe the target might have been his accomplice and they set this little meeting up."

Ranger's gaze moved to the man, and he said something in Spanish.

Hector stilled, and then his eyes got deadly as he circled the man.

I only had an instant to register that Binkie and Woody took up positions in order to aide Hector if it became necessary, because Ranger pulled me against him and led me out of the club with Tank, Bobby, and Lester flanking us. We didn't stop till we were at the Turbo. Once I was inside the car, Ranger left the other three to stand guard while he went around the front of the car to climb in the driver's side. Once he was in position and had the car started, Bobby ran over to one of the SUVs and drove it over beside the Turbo. The rest of the guys climbed in, and Ranger peeled out of the parking lot and headed back to RangeMan.

As we were in route, Ranger put through a call. I heard my father's voice on the phone, and then Ranger said, "There was an altercation at Monty's Bar tonight. We had a distraction set up, and Stephanie was approached by one of the men who tried to kill her when she was eight. We're on our way to RangeMan. My men will be bringing the prisoner to the holding cells there. It's possible that the second man is on his way to the police station."

I heard clearly the clipped tone of my father's voice as he said, "I'm on my way."

Parking beside the elevator, Ranger went with me up to the penthouse, where I showered and dressed in one of his T-shirts. He had me climb into bed and lay there holding me. While I didn't think I'd be able to sleep anytime soon because of all the turmoil hearing that voice had brought up, the rhythmic rise and fall of Ranger's chest as I listened to his breathing had my eyes drooping in no time.

 **Tina's POV**

I threw back the covers and climbed from the bed. A glance at the bedside clock told me Lester had been gone for over three hours. What the hell was taking him so long? He should have been back two hours ago. Fear clutched at me, and I heard the whistle in my breathing that told me I needed to get control of myself before I had a full-on panic attack. Making my way to the bathroom, I fumbled as I looked for the inhaler Bobby had prescribed for me. I had it up to my mouth ready to use when a thought raced through my mind. _Would this be safe for the babies_? I put the inhaler back in the medicine cabinet, knowing I couldn't risk it.

The sudden sound of the locks tumbling had me racing through the apartment, and I threw myself at the figure coming through the door. Lester's soothing voice crooned in my ear, telling me I was safe and everything was all right.

He carried me back through to the bedroom and laid me on the bed. When he went to stand, I whimpered and he turned to look at me. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, he reached out to caress my face. "What's wrong, baby?"

"I woke up and you weren't here. I was so scared, and then I couldn't catch my breath."

Lester frowned. "Why didn't you use the inhaler Bobby gave you?"

I knew the time had come for me to tell him. I'd meant to tell him three weeks ago when the ultrasound had confirmed the doctor's suspicions, but something had come up and the news had been placed on the back burner. My eyes filled with tears as I said, "I was afraid it might hurt the babies."

He pulled me to him and hugged me as he said, "Aw, baby, I'm sorry that I put you in a position where you were worried. We can talk to Bobby tomorrow and ask him if it will hurt the bab—" He broke off as his eyes went wide. He moved me away from him a bit, giving me a look. Even in the muted lighting, stunned disbelief was written all over his face. He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

I watched him. I was equal parts scared and amused. Scared because I wasn't sure how he would take the news and amused because the look on his face was priceless. I grinned and said, "Breathe, Santos."

He bent forward till his forehead was touching mine. His voice was barely a whisper as he croaked out, "You said babies. That's plural…as in, more than one."

I nodded. "It's all your fault. Apparently you have excellent swimmers."

He closed his eyes as he swallowed hard. Then his gaze met mine again, and there was a shy quality that tugged at my heartstrings as he said, "We're going to have twins?"

I lifted my face up to him and kissed his lips before saying, "Triplets."

Lester's eyes nearly bugged out at that. His voice was hoarse as he whispered, "Three?"

I nodded. "Yep."

He threw back his head and started laughing. In the next instant, he'd lifted me from the bed and swung me around in a circle, stopping mid-swing with a look of horror on his face. "Oh, shit! I didn't hurt any of you, did I?"

I chuckled. "We're all doing fine. And the doctor said that we can continue with our normal sex life."

Heat raced to my core at the look of desire in his eyes. As if I was a fine piece of china that might break into a million pieces, Lester carried me with infinite care back over to the bed. This time when he laid me down, he took a wrist in each hand and moved them so they were together over my head as he let his gaze roam over me.

I watched the expressions on his face change and knew the precise moment when desire became the driving force.

With extreme care, he inched my T-shirt up over my head and removed the lacy thong I was wearing so that I was lying before him naked. Then he stood, and with supreme control, he slowly removed his own clothing until he was standing before me without a stitch.

My eyes went to his groin, where his cock was already twitching with excitement. My eyes gleamed with anticipation. One thing I'd learned in our months together: Lester was an exceptional lover, and he knew just what to do to bring me the most pleasure.

As if of their own volition, my legs spread, welcoming him.

Careful so as not to place too much weight on top of me, Lester lowered himself till his cock was at my entrance. Still keeping most of his weight off me, he lowered his head to take one of my nipples in his mouth, using his tongue to tease it before taking it more fully in his mouth.

I cried out in pleasure as I arched off the bed, trying to get closer.

He moved to free one of his hands so he could take the other nipple between his thumb and forefinger, pinching with just enough force for it to be pleasurable. Moving us so that we faced each other on the bed, he caressed every inch of my body with his hands and mouth before once again letting his cock rest at my opening. He leaned down to look at me, and the intense pleasure that must be on my face would have told him that I was more than ready. With one thrust he was inside, and the rhythm quickened until we were both flying off the edge.

It was several minutes before our breathing returned to normal. I wiggled around till I was looking into Lester's face. There was such tenderness when he looked at me.

He moved his head so that he was able to kiss me thoroughly before pulling back. "I love you, Tina. You've brought so much joy to my life. Will you marry me?"

I was equal parts elated and stunned. I swallowed and then said, "Are you asking because I'm pregnant?"

He looked at me for several moments as if weighing what he was going to say. His eyes lit up suddenly, and then he said, "You knocked me on my ass within hours of our first meeting. I never recovered. I've been in love with you ever since. When Harper had you and I was forced to watch them hurt you, I promised myself that I would find them and make them pay. Then when we did find you, I promised myself that I would accept whatever you could give me and I wouldn't press for more. Now you're pregnant, and although I would love for you to be my wife, I'm still willing to accept whatever you can give me. I just pray that it will mean that I can always be in your life." He swallowed hard before continuing. "To answer your question, yes, I'm asking you to marry me because you are pregnant, but not as a bad thing. It's because I'm hoping that you'll accept me completely into your life as your life partner and soul mate."

Tears pooled in my eyes. "I love you, Les. I'd be honored to be your wife. If you're sure that's what you want."

The look on his face told me all I needed to know, but he gave me the words as well. "You are my reason for living. I'm here because you are. Without you, I would cease to exist."

I went into his arms, and we spent the rest of the night making love.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

 **Stephanie's POV**

The sound of an alarm woke me, and I turned to find Ranger lying beside me with his head propped on his hand. I smiled as I stretched, rubbing my foot against the calf of his leg.

His eyes heated as he lowered his head, and then the sound of the phone ringing broke into the moment. For several seconds as his head hovered over mine, I thought he might ignore the call, but he sighed and pulled the offending item from his utility belt on the nightstand. "Yo."

I watched his facial features as he listened to the caller. Something told me this had to do with the man they'd taken into custody last night. Ranger's eyes darted to me, and in that instant, I was sure of it. After several tense seconds he finally said, "We'll be down in five."

Ranger disconnected the call. He bent down to kiss my lips before pulling back as he said, "We need to meet the others in the conference room. Your dad has some information on the guys we picked up at Monty's Bar."

I hesitated for a fraction of a second.

Ranger's hand clenched gently around a lock of hair as he said, "If you'd rather stay up here, no one would say anything."

I shook my head. "I need to face this."

"All right. I'm right here beside you."

Reluctantly, I threw back the covers and climbed out of bed. I felt Ranger's gaze on me as I padded naked into the bathroom. Knowing we needed to be downstairs in just a few short minutes, I hurriedly answered Mother Nature's call and then pulled on my underwear, a pair of jeans, and a T-shirt. I grabbed my shoes and socks and headed back into the bedroom to give Ranger a go at the bathroom.

When I got to the bedroom, no one was there, so I sat down on the bed and finished dressing. After slipping on my shoes I went in search of Ranger. I found him by the kitchen door with a travel cup of coffee and a Boston Cream.

My eyes closed, and I let loose with a moan as I seized the pastry out of his hand and took a healthy bite.

His deep-timbered chuckle did things to me that had me wanting to drag him back into the bedroom, but we had company downstairs and I was anxious to find out what they'd been able to learn about the two men from the bar.

I opened my eyes and zeroed in on him. One look at his dilated pupils told me he was feeling what I was. A discordant sound of a beep coming from his utility belt broke the moment, and his eyes hooded as he said, "Remember where we left off, Babe. Let's go get this handled."

His hand went to my waist as I preceded him from the apartment. We took the stairs down, and by the time we stepped out on the fifth floor, I'd finished my doughnut. As we entered the conference room, I handed my coffee to Ranger and waved my sticky fingers at him.

The corner of his mouth lifted in a smile, and I turned to make my way over to the sink in the alcove so I could wash my hands. Once they were dry, I took my seat at the table beside Ranger.

Within minutes, the others joined us. The last ones through the door were my dad and Joe.

Dad made his way over to where I was sitting and leaned down to kiss my cheek. "How are you holding up, pumpkin?"

"I'm doing okay. I know that you and Ranger are going to get to the bottom of this."

He winked at me before taking the chair beside mine.

Ranger gave a miniscule nod, which started the ball rolling.

Hector leaned forward. "When I talked to Hintin, he admitted that Helen hired him and Maglio. When they failed to complete the job, Helen flew into a rage and refused to pay them. She told them the only way she would ever pay them was if they completed the job."

I took a deep, shuddery breath, and for a moment, I felt as if I'd been hit hard.

Dad reached out and covered my hand with his.

I looked up at him, noticing the worry in his eyes. "This is a troublesome situation. I'm afraid I have some bad news."

I frowned but stayed quiet. I knew that he would tell us in his own time.

He took a deep breath and turned to look at Ranger and me. "Helen disappeared from the hospital. She was taken to the common room and attacked Jeanne Ellen, killing her, and then she was taken back to her room. When the nurse did rounds fifteen minutes later…she was gone."

I froze, stunned, until arms wrapped around me, making me feel safe and loved. Ranger whispered at my ear, "You're safe, Babe. I won't let her hurt you ever again."

I nodded shakily. The rest of the meeting went on, but I wasn't able to follow everything. Only odd pieces of information filtered through for me to latch on to.

Although I was aware of time passing, I couldn't say how long it had been before I was brought back to the present when my dad leaned over and kissed my cheek. He whispered, "I'm sorry, pumpkin. I wish I could have saved you from hearing that, but you need to know she's out there so you can protect yourself."

I nodded. "I know, Dad."

He caressed my cheek as he looked at me solemnly for several seconds, and then he stood and moved away. "I'll be checking in on you. And don't try to shake the shadow I put on you."

I grinned. "The only one of your guys who can keep up with me is Rodriguez."

A voice I hadn't heard in a few weeks piped up and said, "You paged?"

My eyes widened. "I didn't see you come in."

He chuckled. "You've had a lot on your mind. I'm going to be your shadow until Helen is back in custody."

I grimaced. "Normally I wouldn't agree to having a babysitter, but since it's you…"

He winked. "Hector refined the ring so that I have the frequency as well. If you get in trouble, just press the gem, and we'll ride in with guns blazing."

I nodded. "Thanks. Hopefully we won't need for that to happen."

Just then another voice spoke up to say, "He won't be the only one on your tail. I've been watching over you for six years. I have no intention of stopping now."

I hesitated. "What about Millicent and Alice? I don't want them being targeted because you're helping me."

Thor grinned. "They're well protected. No one will be able to use them to get to me."

I felt a measure of relief. Something felt wrong about this though. I couldn't help the worry I was feeling for Tina. I didn't know how she fit into this, but the feeling that she was in danger was suddenly uppermost in my mind. I turned to Lester and asked, "How's Tina?"

He got a dopey grin on his face and said, "She just told me that we're going to have a baby." He laughed, shook his head, and said, "Correction, we're going to have triplets."

There were congratulations all around.

I felt someone watching me and turned to see Ranger looking at me. His eyebrow raised as he asked, "What's wrong, Babe?"

I shook my head. "I have a bad feeling. It gets worse when I think of Tina."

Cam whipped his head in my direction, and I knew that he'd heard what I said. He moved over and knelt down beside me. "Is Tina in danger?"

I shrugged. "I don't know for sure…but I think she might be."

Cam's face tightened, and he looked up at Lester, who'd moved over to where we were when he heard Cam's question.

Lester paled. "Why would she be in danger, Beautiful?"

I looked up. The others were looking at me as well now. "I'm not sure… It's a feeling. When you were talking about Helen, I got a hinky feeling, and when I thought of Tina, it got worse."

The muscles moved in Lester's jaw, making it obvious he was clenching his teeth. His eyes got fierce as he said, "If those bastards try anything, I'll pulverize them."

Cam stood. "You'll have to beat me to them, Santos."

My mind raced, trying to figure out how Tina could be in danger. I could remember her reaction a couple of weeks ago when I'd finally gotten the report from FBI headquarters in London. She'd made the comment that if the bastard came after her this time, she'd slice off his balls with the whip. I believed she'd do it too.

It was hard to believe that only six months had passed since my first meeting with Ranger and the team that went with him to London after a high-dollar skip for the government. We were like fire and ice in the beginning, and it wasn't until I spent time at Ranger's apartment taking care of his daughter that I'd gotten a closer glimpse of the human being hidden beneath the layers.

Jealousy caused him to hit out at me and sent me running though. Fortunately, Thor saved me and took me to his hideaway. As soon as I'd come to, I insisted on calling my dad. That's when I found out that they'd found Tina—who'd been kidnapped and tortured by a Jack the Ripper wannabe.

Of course, that led to more questions. What would Helen have to do with the monsters behind torturing and killing women?

I looked up at the others and shook my head. "I don't have the answers yet. But I'm going to start looking."

 **Tina's POV**

I paced as I waited for Les. He had a meeting this morning, but he promised me he'd be back in time to go with me to meet the midwife. Although he was reluctant to agree to not using a doctor for the delivery, especially knowing that I was having three babies instead of one and I'd almost certainly go into labor before I hit the ninth month, I'd finally gotten him to understand that this was what I needed to feel comfortable.

Jess was a miracle worker, and I'd been able to get through most of my insecurities since the kidnapping, but there were still some things that I couldn't control.

Just as I was starting to panic, the locks tumbled and the door opened to reveal Les had finally made it back. I rushed into his arms and clung to him, only becoming aware that someone else was in the room when I heard a throat clearing.

I turned to see who else was with us and smiled as I saw Cam's worried face. I grinned at him. "Don't worry, big brother. I'm okay now. I was just worrying that Lester wouldn't be in time to come with me to see the midwife."

Cam frowned. "Why aren't you seeing a doctor?"

I rolled my eyes at him. "Midwives are better than doctors because they specialize their training in delivering babies."

He shook his head. "I'd still feel better if you were seeing a real doctor."

I shuddered at the thought of lying on a table with my feet in stirrups while a man poked and prodded me.

Lester wrapped his arms around me. "I feel the same way you do, Cam, but Tina knows what's best for her in this instance. She's agreed to let Bobby and an obstetrician he knows monitor the pregnancy as well just in case. That's good enough for me."

Cam reluctantly nodded. His smile was week as he admitted, "I think I understand. Do you mind if I go with to meet this woman?"

I grinned. "No problem. But if I have to get naked, you get to wait outside."

Cam laughed. "Deal."

The three of us headed to the garage, where Lester helped me into the passenger seat and Cam climbed into the back behind me while Lester took the controls. In no time we were at the clinic where I was to meet the midwife who would deliver my babies.

Once the SUV stopped, Cam had my door opened and was helping me out when Les rounded the hood of the vehicle and held out his hand to me. I placed my hand in his, and we made our way inside. I moved through the waiting room to the window where the receptionist sat.

Leaning forward I said, "I have an appointment with Alexandria Marshall."

The woman smiled. "You're a lot younger than our normal clientele. Have a seat, and I'll let Alex know that you're here."

I was a bit puzzled by what she said. I didn't think I was all that young, but maybe most of their clients were in their thirties. Not giving the matter another thought, I walked over to the sofa with Lester beside me and took a seat. I was a bit surprised when Cam sat down on my other side. Something was off about his behavior. If I didn't know better, I'd think there was something going on and he was in protective mode. Maybe it was because I was pregnant.

Before I could think much more about that, a nurse walked into the waiting room and said, "Tina Shepherd."

As one, the three of us stood and Lester's hand went to my waist as we followed the nurse back to the examining room. When she saw both guys with me, her eyes got big and she stammered, "Uhm…are all of you going to be in here? Usually…uhm…it's just the parents."

I grinned. "My big brother is a bit overprotective. He'd like to meet the midwife who is going to deliver my babies."

She looked relieved. "Oh! Okay, then. Alex will be with you in just a couple of minutes." She took a gown out of the drawer and said, "You'll need to change into this."

I looked pointedly at Cam.

He chuckled softly and held up his hands. "I know, I know. You want me to wait outside."

He followed the nurse out, and I lost no time in shucking my clothes and pulling on the gown.

Lester winked at me as I sat back on the exam table. "You'd make a paper bag look sexy, gorgeous."

I rolled my eyes. "Can it, Lester."

He chuckled and lowered his head so he could nuzzle my neck.

I had just turned to allow him better access when a knock sounded on the door and it opened before either of us could say anything.

The look on my brother's face had me smiling. He looked like he'd been hit between the eyes with a two by four. The woman beside him was the most incredibly beautiful woman I'd ever seen. Her blonde hair reached the middle of her back, and her eyes were a deep sapphire blue. She had a heart-shaped face, and the minute she saw us she smiled, exposing dimples in her cheeks. Although I was sitting and she was standing, I could tell she was at least a couple inches shorter than my own five feet five inches because of where she came up to in comparison to Cam. She was wearing a white doctor's jacket but it was easy to see that she was fine-boned and slender.

"Hi. You're a bit younger than my regular clientele."

I chuckled. "That's what the nurse said."

Alex smiled. "I specialize in traumatic births. Most of the women I see are over forty."

I was getting a bit worried as I asked, "That doesn't mean you won't see me, does it?"

"Oh, heavens no. Let me just take a look at your chart." She reached for the file sitting on the counter by the computer and her eyes widened. "Ah! I see why you were referred to me. It seems you're having triplets."

I nodded. "Yes. We just found out."

She smiled. "Well, you have nothing to worry about. Pre-term babies are the norm for me."

I relaxed. "That's good. I was pretty freaked out about seeing a male doctor."

She looked at me for a moment, and then her gaze went to the guys before returning to me. "Is there something I should know here?"

I knew she should have the info, but I wasn't ready to relive all that had happened. I'd talked everything out with Jess, and Les and I'd had several talks, but there was a lot I wasn't able to say. I turned to Les, and he leaned down and kissed my forehead. "Could you take a look at Tina, and then while she gets dressed, Cam can tell you all about it?"

Alex turned to Cam and blushed. "If that's what you prefer. We could talk in my office."

Cam nodded absently. He still hadn't looked away from Alex, and I had the impression my brother had met his Waterloo.

Alex was thorough in her examination, and once she was satisfied with what she'd learned, she gave a quick nod and said, "Everything looks fine. I'll leave you to get dressed, and I'll need you to make an appointment for next month. We'll do an ultrasound to check on the babies then." She turned to Cam, and once again she blushed. "If you'll come with me, we can discuss the other."

Cam nodded and followed her like a lost puppy.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

 **Stephanie's POV**

I pulled into the driveway and put the Cayenne in park before grabbing my gear and climbing out. I spotted my shadows as I headed toward the door, smiling as I saw Grandma Mazur standing on the front porch with Robyn. Transferring the box that I was carrying so that I could hold it with my left arm, I wrapped my right arm around first Robyn and then Grandma.

Robyn's voice was low as she said, "Let's get inside. Unless I miss my guess, you've picked up another stalker."

I rolled my eyes. "Not exactly."

As we moved into the house, Robyn gave a wry chuckle. "If you're trying to reassure us, you're going about it the wrong way."

I grimaced. A deep sigh escaped, and then I said, "We got the report back from London. It seems things weren't as wrapped up as we thought. Add that to the fact that Helen is missing from the hospital and I have a deep-seated fear that Tina might be in danger and she's pregnant with triplets…"

Robyn whistled. "Never a dull moment, is there?"

I nodded. "The only reason Ranger agreed to my coming over and helping with the party plans today is the fact that RangeMan is monitoring the house and I have at least five shadows outside in various locations."

She laughed. "Only five?"

Grandma raised her eyebrow ala Groucho Marx. "I wouldn't mind getting a closer look at all that beefcake."

Robyn and I both laughed at that, and I hugged Grandma. "The guys are on to you. That's why they only get as close as they have to."

She moved her dentures around in her mouth for a moment and then said, "It wasn't my fault. But if it wasn't for that big guy, I would have caught one of them."

I leaned my head against hers and said, "Tank couldn't help it… The survival instinct took over."

She gave me a look and pushed me gently away. Her gaze turned serious as she asked, "Is it true that they caught the men who tried to hurt you when you were little?"

I nodded as I looked at the two of them. "Yes. We were running a distraction last night, and one of the men sat next to me at the bar. The guys took him into custody, and the skip turned out to be his partner. They'd set it up, knowing I'd help the guys with a distraction."

She shuddered.

I wrapped my arms around her and softly told her, "It's all right, Gram. We're all safe."

She shook her head. "For now." She reached up and wiped the moisture from her eyes. "I don't understand how Harry and I managed to have such a child as that woman…"

Robyn stepped forward and hugged Grandma. "It's not your fault. Nothing about what she did was your fault. You were as much a victim as Stephanie. It's time to put her in the past where she belongs."

Grandma shook her head. "How do I do that when she's out there somewhere doing who knows what?"

Robyn and I looked at each other for a moment.

Looking around for a distraction, I said, "I don't see the munchkins. Where are you hiding them?"

Robyn smiled. "Joe took them to the zoo with Grandma Bella."

Grandma chuckled. "She heard about the trip I took with them and demanded equal time."

We made our way to the kitchen table, and Robyn got coffee for everyone while we took our seats. After setting the coffee down on the table, she took her seat and asked, "Okay, so where do we start?"

I frowned. "Aren't Rina and Angie coming?"

Robyn rolled her eyes as she shook her head. "Rina's probably running late again. I'm sure they'll be here before we get done."

Trying not to laugh, I opened the folder that I'd brought with me and pushed the photos over so they could look at them. "The guys think you should have a GI Joe themed party since two thirds of the birthday group are boys. The only dissenting votes were Ranger, Tank, and Lester. They think it should be a princess themed party for Casey with knights in shining armor for the boys. Of course, once they came up with the idea, they called Dad and he's throwing his vote for that as well."

Robyn laughed. "Oh, man. Those are the two choices that everyone at the precinct is fobbing off on Joe. You don't suppose the guys would have talked to them down at the cop shop, do you?"

I smiled as I nodded my head. "That's exactly what I think." I drummed my fingers on the table. "Have you asked the kids what their choices are?"

Robyn gave a sigh as she rolled her eyes. "Casey wants Wonder Woman, C.J. wants Spiderman, and C.D. wants Captain America."

My eyes widened. "Why don't we have a super hero party? That way all of the kids get what they want."

Robyn's eyes widened. "That's an excellent idea. Why didn't I think of that instead of making it so hard?"

Grandma patted her hand. "You're working on sleep deprivation. You're allowed."

We all laughed at that one and then got down to planning.

 **Unknown POV**

I smiled as I watched her move from the building where she lived to walk to the dilapidated vehicle she drove. She was the one I would give them so they wouldn't insist on getting Agent J. I would convince them that hurting this girl would be worse than what they wanted to do to J. After all, Caterina Alicin Morelli was her baby sister, and I knew how much the girl meant to J.

She climbed into the car, but I knew she wouldn't have any luck in starting the thing. After all, I had the battery in the trunk of my car. I just had to wait for her to get out and check under the hood, and then I'd have her right where I wanted her.

As I watched, she looked around, but since there was no one in the area, I knew she'd feel secure in getting out and checking. Before I could gloat on having her right where I wanted her, strobe lights flashed and I saw the college rent-a-cop car pull up beside her.

My eyes narrowed at her reaction. Instead of smiling and looking relieved, she hurriedly locked all of the doors and seemed to pull into herself as she pulled out her cell phone.

 **Rina's POV**

 _Shit!_ I was running late again! Hurrying to grab all of the stuff I needed for the party planning session with Robyn, Steph, Mom, and Grams, I locked the door and rushed out to my—as Steph would call it—piece of shit car. I groaned as I turned the key and nothing happened. Great! I so didn't need this right now. A sigh escaped as I looked around, and not seeing anyone in the area around me, I was getting ready to get out of the car when I saw the flashing lights from one of the campus security cars.

A shudder racked through me as I remembered my last run-in with Avery Mickleson. The guy gave me a serious case of the creeps. I hurried to make sure that all of the doors were locked and grabbed my cell from my purse to call Dad. The call connected as a knock sounded on the window beside me, and even though I tried not to, I jumped.

A voice on the other end of the phone said, "Rina, what's wrong?"

I couldn't help the laugh that escaped. "Dad, you make it sound like the only time I call you is when I'm in trouble."

I knew he was smiling, even though I couldn't see him as he replied, "Well, not the only time, but when I know that you were supposed to pick up your mother twenty minutes ago and she called to tell me you were running late…"

Another knock sounded on the window, and I couldn't help the scream that escaped.

"Rina! What's going on? Where are you?"

My hands were shaking with nerves. "I'm in my car outside of my building. The car won't start, and Avery is standing outside the car knocking on the window."

"Stay put. I'm on my way."

I disconnected the call but kept the phone up to my ear and pretended I was still talking. I could see the anger on Avery's face as I flicked a look at him from beneath lowered lids, but he just paced back and forth outside the door with an occasional pounding on the window with his fist.

All of a sudden, three black SUVs pulled into the parking lot, and I recognized Tank and Ranger as they got out of a black F150 truck and moved in my direction.

Avery turned to confront them. His gun was out, and he was pointing it in my direction.

The shaking got worse. I tried to hunker down so that I would be out of the line of fire, but I had a feeling if he opened fire, I'd be dead. How did I get myself into this situation? Why didn't I see that Avery was unstable in the first place and refuse to even go out with him?

The answer to that was obvious. He was good-looking and charismatic in the beginning. It wasn't until we had been dating for three months that he started to try to control me. When I finally broke it off with him, I should have gone to Dad and told him everything, but he was dealing with the monsters after Stephanie at the time, and I didn't want to add to his troubles. Besides, it wasn't as if I was defenseless. Dad and Joe had made sure I knew how to defend myself, and I was confident in my abilities… At least I had been. Avery was really strong though, and there was something unbalanced about him.

I peeked out at what was going on. My eyes widened as I saw that Ranger had him in a hold and they had his hands cuffed behind his back. Relief washed over me as Avery was handed off to Vince and taken away.

Rolling down my window, I darted my gaze around the parking lot. A flash near the back of the lot caught my eye, and I frowned as Ranger leaned down to say, "He won't be bothering you anymore, Rina."

I nodded, still distracted by something about the vehicle by the dumpster. I frowned. "That vehicle back there doesn't belong. I saw something shiny just a minute ago."

Ranger leaned down closer and maneuvered himself around so that he could take a look without anyone knowing what he was doing. "I see it. Got your phone?"

"Yeah."

"Call your dad back."

I did as he asked, and when Dad came on the line, I said, "Ranger wanted me to call you. I'm putting you on speaker."

There was a second's pause before he responded, "I'm listening."

I looked up at Ranger as he said, "License plate 9J." He paused. "Someone's tampered with the plate. Next three letters aren't distinguishable, but then the rest of it reads, R US. There are four letters in between the J and the R."

"Make and model?"

"Black van with sliding side door. KIA minivan."

I smiled as my dad mumbled, "Damn foreign vehicles. Doesn't anyone buy American anymore?"

Ranger chuckled. "I have three new Buicks in the garage at RangeMan."

Dad laughed.

"Something about the license number bothers me," Ranger continued, frowning.

"What?"

"I can't put my finger on it. But it seems familiar."

"All right, Ranger. I'll let you know what I find out. How's my baby girl doing?"

I rolled my eyes. "I'm doing fine…now. I just have to figure out why the car wouldn't start."

Ranger motioned to one of the guys, and the one I knew to be Junior lifted the hood and swore. He looked at Ranger and said, "The battery is missing."

Ranger opened my door, and as we walked to the truck, Tank fell in on the other side so I was sandwiched between the two of them. Once I was in the vehicle, the guys took their places, and in no time we'd reached Joe's house.

Mom and Dad were standing on the sidewalk as we pulled up to the curb.

Tank climbed out so that I could get out.

Dad wrapped me in his arms as he said, "Thank you again for taking care of my little girl, Ranger."

Ranger nodded, and they got back into the truck.

We turned and headed into the house.

 **Stephanie's POV**

The sound of a phone ringing had me reaching inside my bag to retrieve my cell. "Hello?"

"Pumpkin, Ranger's going to Rina's apartment. Her car isn't starting, and Avery is there."

My stomach felt like it was on a roller coaster. My gaze went to Robyn and Grandma as I tried not to show them how worried I was. There was no sense in all three of us sitting here and worrying. I knew Ranger would take care of her. I just hopped he got there before Avery could do any damage.

It was shortly after Caleb's christening when Rina had finally told us about Avery—a man she'd dated several months before who now refused to accept that she didn't want to see him anymore. If the man hadn't broken her arm trying to convince her to get in a car with him, we might have never learned about it, but there had been witnesses, and when Rina filed a report, Joe and Dad had insisted she tell them everything.

I didn't realize just how distracted I was until the doorbell chimed and I jumped.

Grandma patted my hand and turned to Robyn. "I'll get it while you give Stephanie the third degree."

I started to smile until I saw the look in Robyn's eyes. As soon as Gram was out of the room, she said, "Okay, give."

Sighing, I admitted, "The call was from Dad. It seems that Avery has Rina cornered in her car and it won't start so she can get out of there. Ranger's heading over to help her."

Her expression turned hard. "I'll give Joe a call. I just wish there was something we could do to make him stop terrorizing her."

I nodded. "You would think with all of the stalker laws, that the police would be able to keep him away from her."

She shook her head. "We both know that there are too many loopholes."

At that moment Grandma rejoined us with Angie and Rina. I could see by the haunted look in Rina's eyes that she wasn't ready to talk about what happened just yet, so I diverted everyone's attention to the party we were planning.

Three hours later I stood and said my goodbyes to Grandma and Robyn. I sent a quick text to let the guys know that I was on my way out, and it was only a couple of seconds later when I got the all-clear. When I opened the front door, the sound of vehicles starting was the only thing to break the silence. I scanned the area before making my way to the Cayenne and climbing in.

It only took a matter of minutes to drive from Joe's house to RangeMan, and I hadn't realized just how tense I was until I pulled into the safety of the garage. I pulled into my slot and had just turned the vehicle off when Lester pulled in beside me.

Tina sent me a finger wave, which I returned, and I waited for them to join me. I was anxious to find out how the meeting went with the midwife.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

 **Stephanie's POV**

Tina and I rode the elevator up to the penthouse after she'd kissed Les and told him she'd see him when his shift was over. Cam went to join us, but she held her hand up and said, "We're going to enjoy some girl talk. Whatever has your knickers in a knot, I'm perfectly safe here at RangeMan."

He nodded. "Promise me that if you decide to leave, you'll call me."

She narrowed her eyes on him, but she only nodded.

We rode the elevator in silence, but when we stepped into the penthouse, she turned to me and asked, "What's going on? Why am I being shadowed?"

I didn't want to worry her, but I also wanted to make sure she stayed safe. Deciding to tell her part of the truth, I said, "Helen has disappeared from the hospital, and then Rina had an incident with Avery. I think all of the guys are just on heightened alert right now to make sure all of us are safe."

She studied me for several seconds and then nodded. She let out a big sigh as she said, "All right. I guess I can live with the added hovering for now."

Smiling, I took my seat on one end of the sofa as she claimed the other end. "So, tell me all about your midwife."

Tina grinned. "I think Cam fell for her the minute he saw her."

My eyes widened. "Is she a redhead?"

Tina laughed. "No. She's blonde with blue eyes. And before you ask, she's beautiful."

Smiling, I lifted a shoulder. "This could be a good thing."

She giggled. "I'm looking forward to seeing my brother jump through hoops."

The doorbell pinged, and I glanced at the clock to see that it was just after one. "I'll bet that's Ella with lunch."

"Oh, goodie. I'm starving!"

We headed toward the kitchen, and I detoured to open the door to allow Ella to come in. My eyes widened in surprise as Julie rushed in and wrapped her arms around my waist. I returned her hug and said, "Well this is a pleasant surprise. Have you seen your dad yet?"

She shook her head. "Not yet. Mom and I stopped by just after he left to take care of something for Grandpa Plum and he hasn't gotten back yet."

"Would you like to stay here with me until he gets back?"

She looked up at Ella hopefully, and the older woman smiled. "If you're sure it would be okay."

I grinned. "Of course. Tina and I are having a girls' afternoon, and the more the merrier."

Ella's eyes lit up. "In that case, would you mind if Celia and I joined you?"

Tina had come back, possibly to see what was keeping me, and at Ella's question she grinned and said, "Come ahead."

Ella gave a brisk nod and then seemed to be in a quandary.

I winked at her and said, "I'm perfectly capable of pushing the cart into the kitchen. I'm sure there is plenty for everyone if you haven't eaten yet."

She grinned. "I'll just go grab Celia, and we'll be right back."

"Leave the door propped so you can just come in."

She shook her head sternly. "That's not safe. I would never put your safety at risk." With that she was gone before I could say anything more.

Julie helped me push the cart into the kitchen, and we filled our plates. I'd just set mine down when the doorbell chimed once more, and I moved to answer the door.

Celia was carrying a cake carrier, and from the twinkle in Ella's eyes, she knew what my reaction was going to be when I saw what was inside. We moved through to the kitchen, and Celia set the carrier on the counter before coming to join us and filling up a plate of her own.

We talked about a number of things while we ate our lunch. When it was time, Ella went over to the counter and brought the cake carrier back with her, as well as dessert plates and forks. "I know that Boston Creams are your favorite doughnut, and pineapple upside-down cake is your favorite dessert. I was reading an article the other day where they experimented with taking two distinct flavors and melding them into one incredible dessert."

She took the lid off, and there was a round cake set on top of a round cake-sized doughnut. There was the normal upside-down cake topping you expected to see when you took the cake out of the pan. Under the cake there was a layer of chocolate icing over the doughnut, and unless I missed my guess, there would be Bavarian cream inside the doughnut section.

Ella cut each of us a slice and passed out the treat. I was the first to take a bite, and my eyes closed as I moaned in pleasure as my two favorite tastes melded to create one incredible dessert.

"Ella, you're a magician. This is fabulous."

Tina ate the last bite of her treat and looked down wistfully at the plate.

I chuckled. "You want another piece? You are eating for four now after all."

She shook her head. "Better not. Alex says I need to watch my sugar intake."

Ella smiled. "So I take that to mean you got on with Alex?"

Tina nodded. "I think Cam liked her as much as I did."

Celia's eyes lit up. "Does that mean that your brother has finally met his match?"

Tina said, "I sure hope so. He can give Les and me a break now."

Ella patted her hand. "Your brother loves you. After all the two of you have been through, it's good to see you both getting some happy."

The mood turned somber for a moment.

A voice from the doorway broke the mood, and in the next instant, Julie screeched, "Daddy!" and raced over to be lifted in Ranger's arms.

He smiled at her. "I heard that I had special visitors."

She giggled as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Can I stay with you while Mom goes to Chicago for work?"

Ranger turned to Celia with a raised eyebrow.

She grimaced. "It's not by choice. My boss, Daniel Wolfe, refuses to take no for an answer."

Ranger's eyes narrowed. "Would you like me to explain things to him?"

She hesitated for a moment but shook her head. "No. I can handle it. I know he's right. When I accepted the job, I knew there would be traveling at some point… I've just been putting it off as long as possible."

Ranger gave a slight nod. "Diaz has been asking for a chance to go home and visit his parents. They live in Naperville, which is a suburb of Chicago. Give me your flight and hotel information, and I'll send him with. You'll have his number, so if you need anything, he'll be a phone call away. He'll get to see his parents and get paid for it as well."

Celia looked relieved. "I'd appreciate that. Thanks. It's probably nothing and I'm being silly."

He lifted a shoulder in a slight shrug. "Never hurts to be careful."

Ella looked at Ranger. "And whenever you need to, I'd love to have Julie with me."

Ranger winked at Julie. "Would you like to visit with Aunt Ella when Stephanie and I have to work?"

Julie bobbed her head and grinned. "We can make Stephanie desserts!"

Everyone laughed at that.

Ranger kissed Julie's forehead before setting her down. "Speaking of work, I have to go back down." He turned to me and continued, "Your dad called, and they weren't able to get anything with the partial plate. I sent a team over to check everything out, but they haven't turned anything up yet. Your dad is hoping to convince Rina to stay with them until we can make sure that Avery won't be able to bother her again."

I nodded. "I'll be back down in a bit to work on some searches."

He looked at me and then the others. "Take your time."

Ella stood. "I need to get going. Julie, how about you come with me and we can make some chocolate chip cookies to put in the breakroom?"

Her eyes lit up. "Okay."

Celia stood. "I need to get going as well." She hugged Ranger. "Thanks."

He nodded. "Why don't you come down with me and I can introduce you to Diaz?"

"Okay. Julie, can I have a hug before you go with Aunt Ella?"

Julie raced back and hugged Celia tight. "Hurry back, Mom. I'll miss you even though I'm going to have fun staying with Dad and Stephanie and getting to spend time with Aunt Ella."

Celia laughed and hugged Julie tight before once again letting her go. "Be good."

Julie grinned. "I will."

I watched them leave and then turned back to Tina. "Sorry. I hope you don't mind."

"Of course not. Julie's a great kid."

"So. Tell me everything."

Tina giggled and proceeded to do exactly that.

By the time I got down to my office, it was nearly three thirty. I booted up my computer and logged on. There was a message from my boss, so I opened it and sat back in stunned disbelief. My mind went back to how all this started. Eight months ago, Kye and I had been working for the FBI in London out of the American Embassy. We'd put a plan in action to nab a really nasty character when Ranger and his team had flown to London after the man's brother. My boss had agreed to let Ranger have Prince Raje—the man we were after—so that he could use him to get his twin brother King Daje—whom they'd been after.

Ranger and I had reacted to each other like oil and water but had agreed to set aside our differences to work together. When our part in the plan was over, I'd requested vacation time, and Kye came with me. Things hadn't gone the way they'd hoped, and our help was once again requested. I got stuck pretending to be married to Ranger. Although he was loving and respectful now, at that time he was cold and hated women except to use to scratch his itch when he needed. Added into the mix, Tina had been kidnapped by a man I'd thought I'd put in jail over a year before.

Ranger had been put in a position where he had to make his way back to civilization, and he'd spent the time coming to terms with his past. When I'd opened the door to find that he'd found me, at first I wasn't too happy. But we spent time talking and really getting to know each other, and by the time we'd returned to Trenton, I'd agreed to go to therapy with him so that we could both work through our troubled childhoods.

A few weeks ago, I received information that led me to believe the men who'd kidnapped Tina weren't all in custody, and I called my boss—Constable Barney—in London to see how he wanted us to proceed. He decided to have Kye and me stay in Trenton and work the case from there since there was a good chance the man or men we were after were probably in the US. Ranger gave Kye and me connecting offices on the fifth floor to work out of, and we called in our old boss, Jamison, as liaison for the case.

I was brought back to the present by the blinking light on my desk phone. I lifted the receiver and said, "I just got your email. Tell me how I can help."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

 **Ranger's POV**

Something was bothering me about the scene outside Rina's apartment building. Pushing away from the desk, I stood and walked over to the window. It wasn't the scene outside that I was seeing but the parking lot as I went over everything that had happened from the moment we'd pulled into the lot until we dropped Rina off at Joe's place.

The trill of my phone had me reaching to my utility belt. "Yo."

There was a pause for a couple beats, and then Stephanie said, "I need to talk to you about some information I just got from Constable Barney."

"Me, or do you want the whole team, Babe?"

She hesitated, and the corner of my mouth lifted as I pictured her rolling her eyes at my question. A deep sigh was followed by a wry laugh, and then she said, "All right, Mr. Smart-Ass, I need as many people as you can get into the conference room, as well as Dad and Joe."

A low laugh escaped. "All right. I'll get everything in motion. Let's say an hour from now in the main conference room."

"Thanks."

I disconnected and then called in all of the other players. Once I'd gotten assurances from them that they'd be here at the allotted time, I called down to let the front desk know who was coming and then returned the phone to the utility belt before turning my gaze back to the view outside the window.

Once again I let my mind go back over the scene, cataloguing everything that had happened. It was as I'd been leaning down to talk to Rina that I got the feeling in my gut that I had always gotten when a mission was about to go FUBER. I stilled as my mind raced over the details, and then I once again reached for my phone.

It took several seconds for the call to be answered, and then Frank said, "You forget something, Ranger?"

"Did you get any hits on the license plate?"

"We don't have a definite, but we've narrowed it down."

"Can you bring the list with you?"

He paused and then said, "All right. You want to tell me why?"

"A feeling. Something tells me it's more important than we know."

" _Shit_! Your instincts are as good as Stephanie's, and I have a feeling I'm not going to like your suspicions."

Once again I disconnected the call. We'd said everything that needed saying, and there wasn't any reason to prolong the conversation with niceties. A look at the clock told me I now had fifteen minutes before the others would be arriving. I headed for the door, wanting a chance to talk to Stephanie before the meeting.

 **Stephanie's POV**

I looked around to make sure I had everything for the meeting. There were still several minutes before I needed to be in the conference room, but I was anxious to let the guys in on what was going on. The tingling at the back of my neck had me putting my hand up there as I turned to face the door. Just as I turned, Ranger stepped into the open doorway. I smiled as the anxious feeling left me and I felt more relaxed than I'd been for the last hour.

He stepped into the office and closed the door. I didn't wait for an invitation as I moved to his side and wrapped my arms around his waist. He caressed my cheek and ran his hands through my hair.

We stood there like that for several minutes, and it wasn't until the alarm sounded on my watch that I realized just how long we'd been wrapped in each other's arms. I leaned back to look up at him. "You always know just what I need."

He leaned down and kissed me, and when he reluctantly pulled back, he said, "That's because it's what I need too."

I moved away from him to pick up the folders I'd made for everyone, and we walked to the conference room together.

Ranger led me to the seat beside where he always sat, and within a couple minutes, most of the others had joined us. Ranger winked at me and said, "Why don't you start, Stephanie?"

I sat forward and took the stack of folders. "I made a file for everyone, so if you would, please take a look at the information inside. Some of it you might already know, but there is some new information that was just added when Constable Barney sent it to me today."

The folders were passed around, and each of the guys took one.

The door opened to admit Kye and Hector. They took their seats, and Kye's reaction was instantaneous when he got to the last page. "Son of a bitch! So that's how the motherfucker did it."

All eyes turned toward him.

Kye sighed and shook his head. There was pain in his eyes, but it wasn't something everyone would realize. I knew because I was better at reading him, and from the hand that Hector placed on Kye's forearm, his partner was aware of the emotions he was feeling as well.

Kye turned to Hector, and at his slight nod, Kye turned to the room at large and said, "Several months before we met Ranger in London, my partner, Bear, was jumped by a group of neo-Nazis and beaten, raped, and left for dead. Someone had told them that Bear was gay. I always suspected it was Critter, but I didn't have the proof I needed—" he looked down at the folder as his jaw clenched "—until now."

I gently added, "Hector was able to extract enough information that when Critter was taken back to London, the only way for him to have a hope of getting into a prison where he'd have a chance of surviving was for him to name names. With the information I was given, I was able to learn that Critter had a sister. When I went on a hunt to find said sister, I followed her trail back to Penelope at the Embassy headquarters."

Shep whistled. "She had access to everyone's cases."

I nodded. "Yes. And she's the reason I didn't get the report I'd requested until four months after the incident had ended. There are strong suspicions that she's involved in the Brotherhood murders."

Lester's hands clenched into fists. "Those bastards better stay the hell away from Tina." He turned to me. "This is what that feeling was about, wasn't it? Somehow one or more of those bastards got away, and you think they'll come after Tina because of what happened to the others."

I shrugged. "It's a strong possibility. I can't get past that license plate Tina told me about."

Dad spoke up and asked, "What plate?"

I turned in his direction and replied, "9JRKS R US. She said she saw it when they were carrying her into the building where she was found."

Suddenly Dad and Ranger looked at each other, and Dad was swearing like I hadn't heard him do since I was little and he learned that Helen was getting out of prison.

When Dad stood, the chair that he'd been sitting in scooted back, crashing into the wall behind him.

I looked to Ranger, hoping to get a clue why they seemed so upset. He had his phone in his hand, and I frowned as he said, "I want you to take a squad and pick up Rina. According to her tracker, she's in her English class. Bring her back here."

"Would someone tell me what's going on?"

It was Ranger who laid his hand over mine before saying, "When your dad asked us to help Rina out, there was a black van there with a partial license plate. There were letters missing, but the first and last numbers were the same as what you just said."

Worry for Rina was uppermost in my mind as I looked around the table. My gaze zeroed in on Thor.

His eyes widened slightly, and he started shaking his head. "Oh, no. You have the wrong person."

I bit my bottom lip as I worried about my sister's safety. I looked at the others in the room, but somehow my gaze ended back up in Thor's direction.

He gave a forceful sigh and swore. "Aside from Millicent and Alice, I've only met one woman I even like, and you want me to babysit your sister?"

"I know she'll be safe with you."

A chuckle came from Tank's direction. "Little girl, if you thought Ranger was a bastard when you first met him, that's nothing compared to how Thor treats them."

I was confused. "But he's always been nice to me."

The look on Thor's face had my eyes widening in realization. I felt at a loss as to how to deal with this new revelation. This was what my subconscious already knew and why I was never truly comfortable pretending to be part of a couple with Thor.

I lowered my gaze to the table in front of me, and only Ranger's hand descending onto mine comforted me.

A low growl sounded and a fist slammed onto the table as a chair went skittering back to crash. "All right. For you I'll do this, but I'm not making any promises about being nice to her. I'll take care of her and keep here safe. That has to be good enough."

I looked up at Thor and smiled gratefully. My voice was barely a whisper as I said, "Thank you."

He looked at me for several seconds, and then without a word he left the room.

My mood was somber as I listened to the discussion going on around me. It wasn't until the sound of a phone ringing that I zeroed back into the conversation.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

 **Rina's POV**

We were in the middle of a boring lecture on the pitfalls of comma splices and run-on sentences when I noticed a bald head in the window section of the door. Normally a bald head wouldn't make me take notice, but this one had a flaming skull on it, and I knew that head. I was distracted with thoughts of wondering why Cal was outside my English class when the sound of a throat clearing told me that I'd missed a key part of the discussion going on in the class.

Professor Dudley Richmond was standing in front of me looking down his patrician nose with an air of superiority on his face. The monotone voice that we'd all come to dread asked, "Would you like to share with the rest of us, Miss Morelli, in what is so fascinating to have you staring at the door?"

I rolled my eyes before looking up to meet the professor's gaze as I said, "Uhm, no, I'm good, thanks."

The narrowing of his eyes gave me goosebumps, but I was my father's daughter, and no matter how uncomfortable I was, I refused to show it to the enemy.

Richmond stared at me for what seemed like forever before he turned to the rest of the class and asked, "Mr. Miller, perhaps you'd care to answer the question that was posed to Miss Morelli."

Garret Miller was the star quarterback for the school's football team and liked to think he was God's gift to womankind. I'd shot down the passes that he'd made, and the last time he promised to make me sorry. The smirk on his face told me that he was going to get his own back, or at least try. "Actually, I think I'll let her answer, since she seems to know so much on the subject."

Just then Barb Carmichael spoke up to say, "Gee, isn't that just too bad that we've run out of time for today."

I lowered my head as I raised my hand to cover the smile on my face.

Professor Richmond moved to the front of the class and said, "I suggest all of you write a three-thousand-word essay on the benefits of knowing when to use a comma splice and how to explain to the children in your charge how to do so correctly."

There was a massive groan, and then knowing there wouldn't be any changing his mind, everyone started packing up their gear. I took my time, secure in the knowledge that Cal would be in the hallway waiting and he'd be more than adequate backup if Garrett started anything when we left class.

Sure enough, the minute I got in line to exit the room, Garrett got into line behind me. We'd just cleared the doorway when he leaned forward and whispered, "You have a great ass, Rina, and I'm going to enjoy giving it a ride."

I went to turn and confront him, but it wasn't necessary. Cal had Garrett by the neck up against the wall outside the classroom. Seeing the expression on Cal's face, I didn't blame Garrett for being scared shitless. Cal leaned into him and whispered, "I would suggest you forget all about that…unless you like pain."

Garrett's eyes widened. "Are you threatening me? Do you know who I am? Who my dad is? I can have your ass nailed to the wall with one phone call."

Cal smiled. "Make your call." Without another word he released Garrett, who fell to the ground.

Garrett looked at me with a venomous gaze, and when I smiled and waved my fingers at him, he lunged for me.

Once again Cal had him in a chokehold dangling several inches from the floor.

Campus security in the form of Jerry Stein and Butch Ludmin joined us. It was Jerry who did the speaking when he asked, "What's going on?"

Cal raised Garrett higher. "I'm Miss Morelli's bodyguard, and this scum went after her after saying some vile things. I was just explaining the way things work."

Jerry turned to me. "You all right, Rina?"

I nodded. "I'm fine." I smiled. "Thank you, Jerry."

He nodded. "Was Garrett bothering you?"

"He was, but I think he got the message not to do it again."

Garrett tried to jerk his arm from Cal's hold but had no luck until Cal allowed him to move away. Garrett went to walk by me, as if to show me he wasn't afraid. When he got close to me, he made another lunge at me, and the training that I'd gotten from Dad, Joe, Stephanie, and Kye took over and I kneed him in his privates. He went down hard and started rolling around on the floor.

Jerry handcuffed Garrett and said, "You're coming with us. Maybe you'll chill out once we get you in a holding cell. And don't worry about your football career. Our boss despises sports of all kinds, and she'll make sure you never play for this school again as a deterrent to all other jocks."

I rolled my eyes. "Great! And once the whole school finds out that I'm the one who's responsible for him getting pinched, my academic life will be in the toilet."

Butch grinned. "Not once they see my little brother play. He's twice the player this one is."

I grinned. "Well, make sure that they find out sooner rather than later."

Both of the guys laughed.

Cal moved up beside me and leaned down to whisper, "Your dad asked me to come and pick you up. There have been some developments, and your safety is in question."

I froze for a moment and then asked, "Does this have something to do with Avery?"

Cal shook his head. "Your dad will fill you in when we get to RangeMan."

I narrowed my eyes as I glared at him. I wasn't happy with the answer I got but knew there was no way I'd get anything more from him. He led the way to his vehicle, and after making sure I was settled, he took his place behind the wheel.

The ride to RangeMan didn't take long, and when he parked in the garage, I'd just gotten out of the SUV when Thor came storming out of the stairwell. My heart started racing as I watched him close in on our location.

Thor was a force to be reckoned with, and from the first, I'd known that he was in love with Stephanie and did my best to put him out of my mind. Unfortunately, my body had other ideas, and over the last couple months, I became aware that the desire I felt for him had morphed into something deeper and I knew that I was head over heels in love with the jerk.

Thor nodded to Cal and then turned to look at me.

I narrowed my eyes and lifted my head to show him he wasn't going to intimidate me.

"You're going to come with me. I've been tasked with keeping you safe."

I shook my head. "You're delusional. I'm going nowhere with you."

He gave a single nod and then moved behind me. The next thing I knew, my hands were handcuffed behind my back and Thor lifted me into the air and threw me over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. His forearm was wrapped around my legs so that I couldn't kick out and struggle as I might. There was no way to get free.

Thor gently lowered me into his vehicle, and I was shocked at the plush luxury of the area where I was now lying. Before I could say anything, he shut the lid, and a light came on to show me my surroundings. As the vehicle started moving, a video started to play. I groaned at the irony of the movie that was being played.

The drive was smooth, and I had no idea what kind of terrain we were passing through because the car had obviously been equipped so the passengers wouldn't even feel the smallest of bumps along the way. I'd had a long time to think about what I planned to do when Thor let me out of here. Several scenarios featured in my thoughts over the two-hour drive. I knew that's how long I'd been in there because the movie I was watching was showing the ending credits and it was a two-hour movie.

I stretched as much as possible so that my muscles would be limber when the lid opened, and I promised myself that Thor would be in for a surprise. Just then the vehicle stopped moving, and the sudden lack of noise told me it had been turned off. The trunk opened, and Thor's black scowl was looking down at me. He reached in to lift me out, and I contorted my body so that I could kick out at him. He easily deflected the blow, and in no time I was standing with him towering over me.

I glared up at his smirking face but remained silent. I was going to bide my time and catch him when he least expected it.

 **Tina's POV**

It was late when my eyes finally opened. Lester had texted me that he had a meeting about what had gone down recently with Rina and he'd be home as soon as possible. My gaze went to the clock, and I was shocked that I'd slept for nearly three hours. I was just debating on whether to get up or to stay where I was when I heard the sound of the locks tumbling.

I got up from the sofa and padded through the kitchen till I reached Les. I wrapped my arms around him and laid my head against him. "What have you been up to all day?"

He chuckled, and there was a teasing light in his eyes as he said, "Well…"

I looked up into his face and yawned.

Les leaned down and kissed me. "Have you been napping?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I wanted to conserve energy so maybe I could talk Stephanie into going shopping with me tomorrow."

He frowned. "I don't think that's a good idea."

My eyes widened. It wasn't like Les to deny me anything. Usually he was willing to help me do anything I wanted. My mind raced with the possibilities. I asked, "Why not?"

I could almost see the wheels turning in his mind. "You want to explain why you don't want me to go shopping?"

He grimaced. "I don't mind you shopping…"

"Les, what's going on?"

"It's just that with everything that happened with Rina, and you having triplets, I want to make sure you're safe. I can't do that if you're shopping and I'm somewhere else."

Tears fell to my cheeks as I touched his jaw. "That's the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me. I'm touched that you're taking my safety into consideration, but I promise, I'll be fine with Steph."

He shook his head. "I can't let you do it."

I took a breath to control the anger that was trying to slip through. Although I thought it was sweet he wanted to make sure I was safe, I hated anyone trying to control me. I didn't understand why he was doing this now, when up till now, his actions had been exactly the opposite. I took another breath to make sure I had myself under control and then said, "Les, I'm going shopping with Stephanie tomorrow."

He looked like he was going to argue, so I glared.

Les released a deep sigh and grimaced. "Would you at least allow me to come with?" He looked at me with pleading eyes.

I studied him for several seconds, and in the end, I couldn't deny him, so I nodded. "All right. But no more telling me I can't do something."

The look of relief on his face was so profound it called up a whole host of questions. I was starting to feel hungry, so I decided to deal with it tomorrow and went in search of something to fix for dinner.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

 **Stephanie's POV**

I was going to kill Thor. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. My hands were balled into fists as I turned away from the monitor and stood. Without stopping to tell Kye where I was going, I made my way to Ranger's office and pounded on the door. The fury I was feeling at the way that Neanderthal had treated my baby sister was nearly choking me, and I barely heard Ranger as he said, "Enter."

The minute I opened the door, he was on his feet, and the next thing I knew I was wrapped in his arms as he asked me, "What's wrong, Babe?"

"I just saw the footage when Thor… _kidnapped_ Rina."

I felt him wince and looked up at his face. "You knew?"

His eyes met mine. "Not until Cal told me he sent you the footage and why. I just finished viewing it myself."

I swallowed hard. "Ranger, you know what Avery did to her. What if she's so badly scarred by this…" I couldn't finish.

Ranger hugged me closer and said, "She's a strong person, Steph. Besides, she has you in her corner. She'll come out okay."

I leaned my forehead against his chest as I said, "I tried to call him, but he's not answering."

"He's not taking my calls either."

A sigh escaped. "At least he's consistent."

He leaned down and kissed my forehead. "I'll make sure he knows just how badly he fucked up when all this is over."

I felt the corners of my mouth pull into a smile. "You'll have to beat Dad to the punch. When he finds out…"

Ranger chuckled. "I'm looking forward to seeing where Thor gets dropped. If it's not bad enough, I can make a couple of suggestions."

I leaned up to kiss him and then said, "I guess I should be going back to work. Tina and I are going shopping later this morning at Quaker Bridge Mall."

"I don't think that's a good idea in light of what's going on."

"We'll have our shadows, and I'm betting that Lester is going to insist on going with. She really wants to do this, and if she can't, she's going to want to know why. I think Les should come clean and tell her."

Ranger caressed my cheek with the backs of his fingers. "I don't know. I'm with Les on this one. If it were you…"

My eyes narrowed. "If it was me and I found out that you were keeping this from me, I'd be furious, but more importantly, I'd be hurt."

His lips covered mine in the tenderest of kisses. "I know how strong you are. I might want to keep it from you, but you've more than proven you have the skill to handle any situation. I'll always be honest with you, Babe."

Our lips met in another kiss. The sound of a throat clearing had us breaking apart. We turned, and the man in question was standing there.

"I have a favor to ask of you, Beautiful."

I narrowed my eyes again. "No. I'm not going to tell Tina that I can't go shopping with her. If you want to tell her why you're reluctant for us to go, I'm willing to go along with what she decides, but I won't directly lie to her. I feel bad enough not telling her now as it is."

Lester ran his hand through his hair. "I know you didn't tell her when we got back from the doctor because you didn't want to worry her until I had a chance to talk to her, but I just couldn't tell her. Not yet anyway. Maybe once we get through the next couple of months…"

"Les, that's unreasonable! You can't keep her bottled up here, and if you try, she's going to get suspicious as well as mad."

He looked so lost that I didn't have the heart to say more.

"I don't know what to do. I want to protect her from ever getting hurt again. It would kill me to lose her."

Ranger leaned down, and his voice was barely a whisper as he said, "Give us a couple minutes, will you?"

I nodded. "I'm meeting Tina in twenty minutes. We're going to Pino's for lunch and then heading to the mall."

He gave a slight nod and kissed me once again before I left.

 **Ranger's POV**

I understood Lester's fear, because although I knew Stephanie was a capable person, I still worried every time she was out of my sight. I turned to my cousin and said, "Sit down, Les."

He moved like a wounded puppy to the chair in front of my desk. "What am I going to do, Ranger?"

"You're going to have to decide what's worse. Possibly losing Tina to some unseen danger out there or losing her because you're suffocating her by trying to keep her safe."

His head lifted. I could see by the look on his face that he hadn't considered he'd lose Tina by trying to keep her safe. Now that I'd put the possibility out there, he was trying to come up with a way to keep her safe and in the dark. I knew he was looking at a no-win scenario. He had to make the best of an impossible situation.

He looked at me with a defeated expression. "It won't work, will it?"

Shaking my head, I said, "When Frank told me I wouldn't have to worry about breathing if I ever hurt Stephanie again, I told him I couldn't promise that she'd never be hurt again. What I could promise was that if she was, it wouldn't be intentional, and I'd do my best to keep her safe. Being in our line of work, we know more about the bad elements than most people. Tina's every bit as independent as Stephanie. If you want her to take your concerns for her safety seriously, you're going to have to give her a reason."

He stood and moved over to the window.

I waited for several minutes and then said, "There was a very real possibility that I wouldn't make it back home after Frank dropped me in the middle of nowhere. I was shot in the leg and developed an infection. Stephanie was my reason for living. When we finally got together, I admitted to her the power she holds over my happiness. I made sure that she knew how important she was to my survival. She willingly agreed to the shadows following her around. Not because she doesn't think she can't take care of herself but because she knows what it would do to me if something happened to her. I think Tina would feel the same way once she knows how important she is to you."

His eyes widened as if the thought hadn't occurred to him. After several tense seconds, he nodded. "All right. I guess I better hurry if I'm going to tell her before we leave with Stephanie."

I watched as he hurried from the room.

 **Unknown POV**

Rage filled me as I waited outside the apartment building, again, for the third day in a row. There was still no sign of her. If it hadn't been for those men the other day, I would have had her and they could have started their games.

I looked over at the file that I'd compiled of all the players. The woman Harper had kidnapped… My eyes narrowed on her as I recalled the condition Harley had been in when she'd gotten done with him. She was going to pay for that. Father would make sure of that. More so because of her attack on Jeanne Ellen.

The second page in the file was the young woman I was looking for now. She was J's younger sister, and I knew if we had her, it would hurt J worse than if she was the one going through the torture. It had taken some convincing to get everyone to agree…but I just couldn't bring myself to hurt her directly.

That brought me to the last page of the file. I didn't know why she was important. The more I looked at her little face, the more I saw my sister though. Maybe that's why Father had tried to take her a couple months ago. Fortunately, the man who had rescued her hadn't been able to see our faces, so we were in the clear…for now.

As I set the file on the passenger seat, my gaze went once again to the scene outside the front window just as my phone rang. Without looking, I answered the call. "Hello."

"Father's getting restless. Do you have the girl yet?"

"She's disappeared."

There was a pause, and then from the high-pitched giggle, I knew that Harper was excited about something as he said, "Forget about her for now. The other two are leaving the RangeMan building right this very minute. I'll follow them and relay the location to you so we can grab them when they get to where they're going."

I scowled. I didn't want them to get J. Careful so I didn't tip my hand, I replied, "All right. Let's do this."

 **Tina's POV**

I sat looking at Lester and trying to control the anger that I felt inside at learning what he'd been keeping from me. The pain was worse than the anger, and right now I wanted to get away from him so that I could calm down before I said something I would regret.

He gave me a pleading look as he said, "I'm so sorry for not telling you sooner. My only excuse is that it would destroy me if anything happened to you. After what happened the last time…"

Suddenly all my anger vanished, and I knew exactly what he was telling me. I stood and walked over to where he was sitting. Leaning down, I kissed the top of his head. "I get it, Les. All I can do is promise to take my safety as serious as possible and do everything I can to make sure if something does happen, I have as much backup as possible."

He nodded. "Will you still let me go with you on your shopping expedition?"

Smiling, I said, "Sure. You can come. Stephanie already told me she wouldn't go without her shadows, so I guess the least I can do is let my shadows come along as well."

His hands shook as he cupped my chin. "Thank you, gorgeous."

I shook my head. "I love you. I could never do anything that would cause you pain. Besides, it's not just me I have to think about. I have these three babies inside me who I have to keep safe."

Les leaned forward and kissed me.

When we finally came up for air, I asked, "So, are you ready to shop till you drop?"

He groaned. "Only for you, baby. I hate shopping."

I laughed at that, and we stood and headed down to the garage.

As the elevator doors opened, I saw Stephanie standing by the Cayenne waiting for us. I smiled as I saw that Ranger was standing with her and asked, "Is he coming too?"

Ranger grinned. "He is."

I threw back my head and laughed and then leaned into Les. "Let's get this show on the road, then."

Lester lifted me into the back seat behind the driver and then went around so that he was in the back behind Stephanie. I had to admit, this setup made a lot of sense. As Ranger drove the short distance to Pino's, thoughts of what those bastards had done to me eight months ago had me admitting to myself that I was scared. I'd be a total idiot not to be. I wasn't going to let it rule my life though. I knew I'd be giving Jess a call when we returned. She'd helped me through a hell of a lot in the past eight months. I just hoped the guys could catch these ass wipes before anyone got hurt this time.

The cessation of motion had me turning to look out the window to see that we were parked beside the door to Pino's. Ranger got out and helped me out as Lester performed the same service for Stephanie, and then the four of us headed inside.

Ranger led us to the back booth, and I wasn't surprised when he and Les chose to sit with their backs to the wall so that they could see all exits as well as the rest of the room.

As soon as we sat down, the waitress joined us and gave a friendly smile. "What can I get for you?"

We gave our orders. Stephanie had her usual meatball sub, Les chose the lasagna, Ranger opted for the salad, and I asked for my favorite—spaghetti. We talked about a variety of things while we waited for our order to be delivered, and once the food arrived, we concentrated on eating.

Stephanie seemed to fidget during the meal, and I couldn't help wondering if her Spidey sense was telling her something. We were just finishing up when she took her phone out of her purse and sent a text to someone.

I was feeling a little tense when she suddenly smiled and leaned forward to softly say, "Hector has another vehicle at the back exit. When we come out, we'll take his vehicle, and he'll come in and eat before taking the Cayenne back to RangeMan."

Ranger's eyebrow went up. "Is there something you want to share with the rest of us?"

She shrugged. "My Spidey sense is going nuts. I figure it's better to be safe and change things up."

Ranger nodded. "All right." He took out a wad of bills and tossed them on the table.

We stood and made our way out the back of the restaurant, and sure enough, there were Hector and Kye. Once again, Lester helped me into the vehicle, and then he and Stephanie walked around to the other side and climbed in. I was equal parts excited and scared spitless that we were on our way to the mall.

 **A/N:** Thank you to all the guests reviewing, with a special thank you to Bonnie.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

 **Stephanie's POV**

Three hours of shopping, and I was exhausted. Once we got started, we had a lot of fun, and Tina was now the proud owner of enough merchandise to decorate the nursery she and Lester were building and then some. Rather than buying individual cribs, we'd found a specialty shop that geared their baby furniture for those parents having multiples.

Tina fell in love with a large white square crib that all three babies would be able to sleep comfortably in until they were ready for toddler beds. As a matter of fact, all of the furniture that Tina had liked was white.

I had to practically hold my hand over the lower half of my face the entire time we were shopping so that the guys wouldn't notice the smile that was firmly entrenched on my face. The minute Tina started gushing over an item, Lester would look wistfully at the exact replica in black before sighing and following along silently until they reached the next item.

Ranger had his blank face on, and to the untrained eye, no one would notice that he was as pained by Tina's choices as Lester was, only he seemed better adept in not letting anyone in on what he was thinking.

Ranger arranged to have all of the furniture delivered. Hector and Manny would go over it with a fine-tooth comb, so to speak, and then the items would be assembled and placed in the nursery just the way Tina wanted them.

As we were leaving the mall, it was impossible not to notice the hangdog expression on Lester's face. Tina and I looked at each other, and I could tell she was biting her cheek to keep from laughing. I was looking forward to seeing Lester's face when he saw the finished nursery.

When we reached the SUV and everyone was in their seat, Tina turned to Lester and asked, "Since the shopping trip went so well, do you think we could go to Atlantic City and check out the boardwalk for just a little bit?"

I glanced over at Ranger and noticed that he was looking at Lester through the mirror in the middle.

Lester squirmed, so I had a feeling Ranger was trying to veto the idea, but instead of listening, he let out a sigh and said, "I guess we could do a quick trip. Maybe we could ask Shep, Hector, and Kye to join us?"

I had to cover my mouth with my hand when Ranger rolled his eyes at his cousin. He didn't say anything as he started the vehicle and pulled out into traffic. The ride to Atlantic City was a lot longer than it needed to be. Ranger was driving us in circles in case anyone was following us. By the time we actually got to our destination, it was well past dinnertime and my stomach was making itself known.

Tina giggled as she turned to me. "I'm hungry too. How far is it to the concession stands?"

Lester motioned to a spot just down the boardwalk as we were joined by Shep, Hector, and Kye.

I winced as I got a look at Shep's face. It was like a black thundercloud, and I had a suspicion that the fact that we were here instead of back at RangeMan was key to his negative mood.

Shep scowled as he moved up beside Tina. "Who's lame-brained idea was it to let you come here? Damn it, Tina, it's not safe out here in the open! You need to come with me right now back to RangeMan."

Tina looked crestfallen at Shep's criticism, but before anyone could say anything more, Lester was in Shep's face. His own look promised serious hurt if the other man didn't back off. "We were careful on the way here, Shepherd. Ranger and I aren't raw recruits on our first mission. I'm just as concerned for Tina's safety as you are, but we can't keep her under lock and key. That would only alienate her from listening when the danger level gets higher. She needs some freedom, man, so just back off."

Shep obviously wanted to say more, but he took one look at Tina's face, and the tears streaking down her cheeks seemed to be his undoing. He lowered his head and muttered, "I'm sorry, sis. I'm just worried something might happen to you. I just got you back, and I don't want to lose you again."

Tina walked forward into Shep's arms. "You won't lose me. I know what's going on, and I'll take my safety seriously. But I need stuff like this once in a while so I don't go nuts."

He nodded and reluctantly released her.

She moved closer to Lester, who wrapped his arm around her waist, and we headed off in search of food.

The boardwalk was busier tonight than the last time I'd been here. Knowing what was out there, I was a bit anxious, but everything seemed to be going all right so far. We stopped and got our drinks. I opted for a Coke, and Tina wanted a fruit smoothie. From there we walked a short distance to a truck selling corn dogs. With all of the selections they had to choose from, this was what had been making my mouth water since we'd gotten out of the SUV. I was surprised when Tina asked for one as well because normally she wouldn't have anything to do with hot dogs in any form.

Lester took a healthy bite of his corn dog. When he swallowed his bite, he said, "I love these things. I have ever since I was a little kid."

Tina swallowed the bite that she'd taken of hers and said, "I hate anything to do with hot dogs."

Lester looked crestfallen. "I'm sorry, gorgeous! I can get you something else. Here, let me finish that, and then I can get you whatever you want."

Tina glared at him. "Touch my corn dog, and I'll paste you one. This is _mine_!"

Lester looked confused.

The corner of Shep's mouth turned up in a smile that grew until his whole face was smiling, and then he threw his head back and started laughing.

Lester frowned at him. "What's with you?"

Shep shook his head. "Nothing. I just remember what Mom was like when she was expecting Tina. Normally she was the sweetest-natured person you would ever meet. But her hormones went into hyperdrive, and you never knew if you were going to get Mama Jekyll or Mama Hyde."

Tina's glare moved to Shep. "Are you insinuating something?"

Shep put his hands up in the air. "Not me. Nope. No way!" And then he was laughing once again.

Tina looked down at the stick she was holding and frowned. "What happened to my corn dog?"

Lester swallowed hard before asking her, "Would you like another one?"

She pulled the corner of her mouth in and then gave a brisk nod. "Get me three. Those suckers are tiny."

While Les went to do her bidding, the rest of us moved so that we were more off to the side of a building instead of in the middle of the boardwalk.

My eyes widened when he came back with a dozen corn dogs. I thought he might offer the rest of us another, but that wasn't the case. For every corn dog that Tina ate, he ate three, and from the pace they scarfed them down, you would have thought they hadn't eaten in months.

I turned to Ranger. "Do you think there are any of those left?"

He leaned down and kissed me. "I'll be right back, Babe."

In less than two minutes he was back with another corn dog for each of us. I grinned as I teased him, "I thought the body was a temple?"

He swallowed the bite he was chewing and gave a slight smile. "This is one of my weaknesses."

My eyes widened. "I didn't think you had any weaknesses. What are the others?"

"Only one other…" His gaze met mine, and the desire in his eyes had me fanning myself as he added, "You, Babe."

His mouth covered mine.

A throat clearing had us breaking apart for air, and I looked around at the knowing faces on the others.

Tina put a hand to her stomach and then hurriedly put a hand over her mouth as her eyes widened and she looked around frantically.

I'd never been pregnant, but from the stories that Val and Robyn had told, I could make a good guess as to what was wrong. I turned to scan the area and saw what we needed just six feet away. I moved in that direction, but Kye put a hand on my arm and said, "You stay here. I'll get it."

He hurried over to the trash can and returned just in time to set it in front of Tina before she tossed her cookies.

Lester wrapped an arm around her, holding her the whole time.

As sometimes happens when one person gets sick, there is a reaction from those around them that makes things so much worse. Sure enough, Shep started retching and made it to the trash can at the same moment that Lester got there, and the two of them projectile vomited into the cylinder can.

I had to swallow several times to keep my dinner down, and seeing my struggles, Ranger urged me to lower my head like I would if I felt faint. It worked, as I was able to get control of my stomach and dinner stayed where it belonged.

Tina's voice was hoarse as she said, "I suggest we head back to RangeMan." She turned to Les. "But could you get me another smoothie? My throat feels like it's on fire, and that would hit the spot."

Les looked at the garbage can and then back at Tina. "Uhm…are you sure you should do that, gorgeous? I mean, we're going to be traveling, and I'd hate for your stomach to get upset if the smoothie didn't agree with you."

She glared at him. "It wasn't the smoothie that did it. I hate hot dogs! What's more, I can't eat them. My body refuses to digest them. Every time we had them when I was little, I'd get sick."

The look on Lester's face was priceless. "Why didn't you tell me? I could have found something else you could have eaten. I even offered to eat your corn dog."

Tina's eyes widened. "Oh! That sounds good. Can you get me one of those for the trip?"

A collective "No!" resounded, which startled Tina so much that she jumped.

Lester took her in his arms and said, "I'm sorry we scared you, baby. I know how much you want another one, but my stomach is really rumbling, and I'm afraid the smell would do me in. Would you mind if I got you something else instead?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Are you trying to handle me, Santos?"

He grinned. "I don't know. Is it working?"

She grinned. "Yeah, I guess it is. All right. Get me something that won't upset your stomach, seeing as how you are so delicate." With that, she giggled.

It didn't take Les long to return with a smoothie and an elephant ear.

Tina's eyes widened with delight as she grabbed the treat from him and dug in with gusto.

We headed for the parking lot, and in no time we were ensconced in the SUV and on our way back to Trenton.

 **Unknown POV**

I narrowed my eyes as I watched the house. The lights were going off, and I knew they would all be asleep soon. I was glad that J had given us the slip, but I would have liked for Harper to get hold of the other one. At least that way they would stop hounding me to grab J.

After tonight, though, Father wouldn't be ranting about my incompetence anymore. After tonight, he'd have the little one he wanted so badly.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

 **Stephanie's POV**

It was three days later when Julie and I stopped by to see Lula at the bonds office. I grabbed the box that we'd picked up from the Tasty Pastry, and the two of us made our way into the building.

The minute we stepped inside the office, the box disappeared from my hands and Lula had three doughnuts in her hands, taking turns biting into each doughnut. I whispered to Julie that if she wanted one, she better hurry and grab it.

She grinned and grabbed the two Boston Creams we'd ordered and handed one to me.

I grinned down at her as we bit into them and moaned at the delicious flavors that cascaded through our mouths.

Julie giggled.

I touched the tip of her nose with my finger and then turned to where Connie and Lula were pondering over the selections left in the box.

Lula had her mouth full of doughnut as she said, "I'm glad you're here. I need to go over to Mooner's and pick him up."

My eyes widened. "Again? What did he do this time?"

Connie rolled her eyes. "He made brownies and was taking them to a party when he got pulled over by Officer Picky. Apparently there was an odor coming from the pan, and Gaspick took him down to the station and had the brownies tested. Carl stopped by this morning and told Lula that if she can get him down there today, the charges will be dropped because the evidence disappeared. Seems there was a party at the precinct and the brownies were a big hit."

Julie looked up at me with a frown on her face. "What was wrong with the brownies?"

Connie and Lula had looks on their faces like _oh, shit_!

I debated what I should tell her, and then the more I thought about it the more I thought that I could use this as what they call a teaching moment. I knelt down beside her and said, "Mooner put pot in the brownies. It was wrong of him to do that because someone might have eaten one not knowing what was in it. Mooner wasn't trying to be bad, but his actions were wrong all the same. This is one of the reasons you've been told not to take candy from strangers." I shrugged. "I think you should be careful no matter who offers you the candy. Not everyone who pretends to be your friend really is a friend."

She was still frowning, and I could see her puzzling out what I had told her. I placed my hand on her shoulder and asked, "Do you want to go with Lula to Mooner's?"

Julie nodded. "I know he's done something bad, but I still like him."

I smiled. "Good. We don't have to stop liking someone just because they did something bad."

Lula grinned. "Does that mean we get to take the Cayenne?"

I laughed. "Yes. We'll take the Cayenne."

I scanned the area as we headed to the vehicle, and once we were inside I pressed a button on the dash and said, "We're going to Mooner's."

It was a short drive there, and we parked in front of the house. After tuning off the vehicle, the three of us made our way to the door. Lula rang the bell, but there was no answer so she rang it again. When there still wasn't any answer, I did the complicated knock that I'd done the last time I was here, and the door was instantly opened.

"Dudette! And little dudette! Come in."

He backed up so that the three of us could enter the house, and then he led us into the living room where the TV was playing an episode of _The Love Boat_. "It's great to see you. You're just in time for the marathon."

Lula cleared her throat. "We ain't here to see the marathon exactly."

He looked puzzled for a moment and then slapped his forehead. "I forgot!"

I shook my head. "I thought we had it fixed so you couldn't forget."

He gave me a sheepish look, and I knew that he hadn't forgotten. It was a matter of his plan hadn't gone into effect yet and he needed to stall. His eyes went to Julie, and he winked at her. "I guess we can head down to the station. As a penance, I'll miss the marathon."

Lula's eyes nearly bugged out as she clasped her hands together and said, "Thank goodness. I thought we'd have to sit through hours of boring TV."

Mooner threw back his head and laughed. "I only do that because I know it bugs you and I love getting a reaction." He wagged his eyebrows. "Just wait for the explosion when Officer Picky Pants finds out his evidence is gone."

Julie frowned at him. "How did you know that? Connie said Carl stopped by this morning. Did he stop by here too?"

Mooner had the deer caught in headlights look on his face, and I could see the wheels turning in that brilliant brain of his trying to come up with a plausible story. "Uh…" he stuttered.

I shook my head and told her, "I think something's rotten in Denmark."

Her eyes lit up, and she laughed at that comment before saying, "That's what Mom says when something doesn't seem right."

"Your mom has great instincts." I said before turning to eye Mooner once again.

He raised his hands and said, "I'll be good from now on. Promise."

I looked at Julie and asked, "I don't know. Do you think we should give him another chance?"

Julie bobbed her head emphatically. "I like Mooner. I don't want him to have to go to jail."

I looked at Mooner, and something about the expression on his face told me that Julie's words went deep with him. Unless I was way off base, Lula wouldn't be picking him up again.

We were just about ready to leave when suddenly Mooner stiffened and his eyes widened. "I can't leave it here."

I frowned as I looked at him. "What?"

He hurried from the room, and in less than a couple of minutes he was back with a briefcase. He handed it to me and asked, "Can you have Ranger take care of that little toy for me?"

I was confused as to why it was necessary, but he seemed so intent on my making the promise that I agreed. "All right. Are you ready to go now?"

He nodded and, after locking up, followed us to the Cayenne.

I dropped Lula and Mooner off at the back door and told her that we would wait for her here. For the first few minutes everything went fine, and then my stomach started churning. I scanned the area but couldn't see anything. The longer we waited, the worse the feeling got. It wasn't even a conscious action when I pressed the panic button on the dash.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Lula walked out of the station, and two men ran toward her. I told Julie to get on the floor and gunned the motor so that we were rocketing forward to come between Lula and the two men. She ran to the SUV and had the door shut as a shot rang out and I peeled out of the lot like a bat out of hell.

The instant I pulled out there were three blue and whites behind us with lights flashing, and I didn't stop for anything. Just as I got to the first intersection, the first cop car pulled out around us and led us through the light and then came to a stop blocking traffic from following in our direction.

A voice came over the speaker in the vehicle, and I recognized Vince's voice calmly asking for any information I could give him.

I relayed everything I could from what I'd observed, and then when Vince gave me a destination, I gave him a ten-four to let him know that I understood. It took me five minutes to get to the location that we were directed to, and I was never so happy to see a sea of black vehicles as I was at that moment. I pulled to a stop beside the Porsche Turbo, and Ranger was beside us in seconds.

He got Julie from the back first and then helped me from the front. As he started to take us over to the car, Julie grabbed the back door and cried, "Wait! We promised Mooner."

Ranger paused long enough for Julie to scamper back into the vehicle and grab the case that Mooner had handed us. His eyebrow rose as he looked at the item Julie now held in her hands.

I ran a hand through my hair. "Mooner asked me to have you look after it while he's down at the precinct."

He nodded as he accepted the case from Julie. "Let's get you ladies somewhere more protected."

I looked over to see how Lula was faring and had to smile as I saw her looking up at Tank with her heart in her eyes as he held her close.

 **Celia's POV**

I looked at myself in the mirror, thinking I was as ready as I would ever be. I was still suffering from motion sickness from the flight, but Daniel insisted we had to meet the client for dinner tonight. I just knew it was his way of getting back at me because I hadn't listened to his order to find us seats together on the flight. I'd made sure to have him put in first class while I took the seat next to Raul Diaz, whom Ranger had sent along as my backup in case I needed him.

Although Daniel hadn't been thrilled that Diaz was my seat companion on the flight out here, there wasn't much he could do about it once the plane took off. I had made sure that he wouldn't find out until we were in the air.

I had been trying to do some reading on the flight when I'd felt eyes on me. Looking up, I was taken aback at the harsh look on Daniel's face when he looked at me. He didn't say a word to me but instead headed back in the direction of his seat.

Diaz had placed a hand on my arm and asked me if I was all right. I'd nodded but was totally unable to concentrate on the book in my hands or anything else during the whole flight.

The sound of the doorbell ringing brought me back to the present, and I hurried through to answer the door. The sight that met my gaze when I opened the door had my breath hitching in my throat as I got my first look at Daniel Wolfe in casual clothes. At forty-eight, the man was drop-dead gorgeous with his blond good looks. He was a good six inches taller than my own five-foot, eight-inch frame, and he outweighed me by a good seventy-five pounds.

I couldn't believe my luck when I'd found this job after recovering from surgery. I'd been honest in my interview, telling them I was recovering from a recent surgery. I'd been assured that the company would work with me as long as at some point I would be ready to take on the role of accompanying my boss when he had to travel. I was secretly thrilled that I would have the opportunity to travel. It was something I'd always wanted to do.

Letting out the breath that I hadn't been aware I was holding, I smiled shyly at him. My voice was breathless as I said, "I'm ready."

His gaze went over me, and there was a glint in his eyes when they returned to my gaze. Without a word, he held out his arm, and I reluctantly took it.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

 **Stephanie's POV**

The sound of the phone ringing woke me, and I had a sudden knot in my stomach. I dove for the nightstand where my cell was and connected the call. I was breathless with a feeling close to panic as I said, "What's wrong?"

There was a slight pause, and then Kye's low voice came over the phone as he said, "First off, everything is fine. I'm just calling to let you know that there was an alarm that went off at Joe's house, but by the time the guys got there, whoever it was had disappeared."

My mind raced. "The kids?"

"They're all fine, Steph. The babysitter certainly knows her stuff. She pressed the button the minute she heard sounds of someone outside. Hector and I'll stay here with them until Joe and Robyn get back."

I felt marginally better. "Thanks, Kye."

"No need for thanks. All of the guys have come to look on the triplets as part of our family."

"Still, I appreciate it." I hesitated for just a moment and then added, "I have a funny feeling about this. This is the third time in as many weeks that there's been a problem."

"I don't want to worry you, but I think you're right. It's like they're targeting those closest to you."

A warm hand settled on my shoulder, and I leaned back into Ranger's chest as he wrapped his arm around me. I let out a sigh. "Tell Joe we need to set up a meeting with him and Robyn first thing tomorrow. I'll ask Ella to watch the kids."

"All right. I'll tell them."

"Thanks, Kye. Tell Hector thank you as well."

There was the sound of muffled voices, and then Kye was laughing in my ear. "He says anytime."

I disconnected the call and placed the cell back on the nightstand.

Ranger's chin came to rest on the top of my head as he asked, "I take it there was another alarm at Joe's house."

"Yeah. They didn't find any traces when they got there. There've been too many alarms. Something is really wrong."

He caressed my arm. "I'll add more security."

I turned to face him. "Kye was right. Whoever is doing this is targeting the people close to me."

His hand came up to my cheek. "They won't get to you, Babe."

I shook my head. "They won't have to if they grab Rina, Julie, one of Joe's family, or Tina."

He closed his eyes at the mention of Julie. When he opened them again, there was a look in them I'd never seen before, and his voice was verging on icy as he said, "I'll find them. When I do, they won't be alive to cause anyone problems again."

I hesitated once again because I had no proof of what I was going to say next, other than whenever I thought of these two things there was a knot in my stomach, but they just seemed to fit. "I think all of this is tied in with the men who kidnapped Tina and the information that Constable Barney sent me."

He pulled me closer. "I get that feeling too. There isn't anything more we can do about it right now, so let's get some sleep so we'll be fresh in the morning." Before I could protest, he held up a hand and added, "I know it won't be easy. But Kye and Hector will remain at Joe's tonight and come in with them in the morning. Everyone else is accounted for, and we'd only be allowing them a victory if we don't take advantage of recharging our batteries when we can. We'll sleep now and be able to look at everything with fresh eyes."

I knew he was right, but at the moment I didn't know how I was going to be able to sleep. I lay snuggled into his arms as thoughts of the last three weeks went through my mind.

After I'd spent the day with Tina shopping, I spent the next day with Julie. We had gone to Robyn and Joe's house, and she'd had a lot of fun playing with the triplets. The kids had gone out to the backyard with Bob Jr., and from their squeals we could tell they had been having a great time. Suddenly, the snarls coming from outside had alerted us to the fact that something was up and we'd gone to investigate. There had been a hooded figure standing at the fence, and when Casey had gotten close, he'd made a grab for her. Julie had hit out at the figure, and they'd tried to grab her. Robyn and I had raced outside with our weapons drawn, and when the person had seen us, they had taken off. Since then, there had been four other incidents at Joe's house, all involving Casey.

On top of that, just yesterday there had been an attempt on Tina when she and Jess had been talking. Lester and Cam had gotten there in time, but we were all now in a state of heightened alert.

As a precaution, Ranger had called Celia and asked her if Julie could stay at RangeMan until they had a handle on who was behind all of this. She'd readily agreed and told Ranger it looked like her stay in Chicago was going to be extended and she was glad to know that Julie would be safe.

At some point I must have slept, because the next thing I knew I was being gently shaken. I surfaced enough to hear Ranger saying, "It's time, Babe. Joe and Robyn are here, and Ella's agreed to have the triplets stay with her and Julie while the rest of us talk."

I sat up instantly. "I'm up. Just give me ten minutes to shower and I'll be ready."

He nodded. "I'll make sure Julie is up and make some coffee."

I padded through to the bathroom. It only took me five minutes to shower and another five minutes to dress, and then I was walking through the apartment toward the kitchen where Ranger and Julie were. The three of us rode the elevator down to the sixth floor and dropped Julie off with Ella.

I smiled at the triplets, who were standing beside Ella when she answered the door.

Casey ran forward and wrapped her hands around my legs. "Aunt Stephie. I wanna stay with you!"

I knelt down so that I was on eye level with her and said, "I want to spend some time with you too, sweetheart. But Ranger and I need to go and talk to your mommy and dad. Once we've done that, how about I have them come up to our apartment and we can all have lunch together?"

She bobbed her head.

I smiled. "Okay, sweetie. I'll see you in just a little bit, okay?"

She nodded again.

I kissed her cheek and then moved back so that I was standing beside Ranger. I hated to leave her because she looked a bit lost, and I couldn't help wondering if she somehow sensed that the attempts that had been made had something to do with her.

Julie moved forward and whispered something in Casey's ear, and the little girl smiled and reached out her hand for Julie to take and then followed her back into the apartment.

Ella leaned forward to whisper, "Don't you worry. I'll protect those little ones. We'll have a great time."

We headed down to the fifth-floor conference room. Most of the others were already there when we walked in. Ranger and I took our seats, and the meeting started.

Joe looked like he hadn't slept. He ran his hand through his hair as he growled and said, "Who the hell is targeting my family?"

I winced. "I'm sorry, Joe. I think it's the same group that kidnapped Tina a few months ago."

A muscle worked in his jaw.

Dad laid a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe you and Robyn need to take a vacation somewhere."

Joe shook his head. "I'm working on a murder case. There's someone out there targeting women in their mid- to late-twenties. Some of the bodies have been tortured…" His eyes widened as he put two and two together and came up with the right answer. "Son of a bitch! Why didn't I see this sooner?"

I leaned forward. "Can you get me the files? The more information I have, the better the chance of my finding them."

He nodded and then swallowed hard. "You think these bastards are after my baby?"

The implication wasn't lost on any of us. If this group really was sick enough to do this to a child… I swallowed hard.

Tina hit her fist on the table. "We have to catch them."

Joe shook his head. "How? It's like they're ghosts."

I stilled as a memory surfaced. Lifting my gaze to look around the room, I hurriedly stood.

Ranger took hold of my hand as he said, "Whoa. Where are you going, Babe?"

"I have to see Mooner. I'll be right back. No one leave until I get back."

Dad shook his head. "That's not a good idea, pumpkin. That could put you right in their hands."

I shook my head. "They aren't after me. Whoever is out there knows it would hurt me far more for them to hurt one of the people I love."

Dad nodded. "True. But if they can't get one of them, they just might decide to hurt you directly."

"He's right, Babe. We can't take the chance. I can have Binky and Junior run over to Mooner's and bring him here."

I sat back down reluctantly, knowing that what they said made sense. "All right. But tell them to have him bring back the toy he took off the king."

Ranger looked at me sharply, and as the smile formed on his face, I knew that he understood the significance.

 **Rina's POV**

I closed the book that I'd been reading and looked around at the luxurious prison I was being kept in. Three weeks and I hadn't been able to make any phone calls or figure out just where it was I was being held. I'd searched the whole house and not found another soul aside from Thor. Apparently he'd given all of his staff an extended vacation.

I had the run of the house and could go anywhere on the grounds, as long as I limited myself to the pool area and gardens. At first, I'd thought he didn't have a phone installed here, but on the third day I'd heard the phone ringing and had found it in time to watch Thor look to see who was calling and glower before he pushed a button to silence the rings. When I'd finally managed to take a look at the phone, it was to see that the caller had been Stephanie.

I'd been confused because I knew how much he loved Stephanie and I didn't think there was anything he'd deny her.

When I'd snuck into the room later to try to use the phone, I was disgusted to learn that he'd removed the cord so there was no way I could make the call. I'd been furious that I was foiled in my attempt to gain my freedom, and when I'd turned around, Thor had been leaning against the doorway with a smug look on his face.

I'd lifted my head and marched past him, not even stopping when he'd said something snide as I passed. It wasn't over. I wouldn't give him the satisfaction of giving up so easily.

The sound of the sliding door opening had me quickly closing my eyes to fake sleep.

The sound of a deep chuckle told me that my actions were wasted. Suddenly, I was in shadow, and I opened my eyes so that I could look up at what was blocking the sun.

The hard look on his face had me stiffening. We'd already gotten into several…discussions, and although I had yet to win one of them, I liked to think I gave as good as I got. Just as I thought he was going to say something, he turned and stalked back to the house.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

 **Julie's POV**

It was great spending the morning with Aunt Ella. She got out the baking ingredients and let C.D., C.J., Casey, and me make cutout cookies. All of the dough was made and we were ready to roll it out and use the cookie cutters, when Caleb woke up and wanted a bottle. Aunt Ella left me in charge of the cookie baking while she went to take care of the baby. This was something the two of us had done a lot over the years when she'd come to visit Mom and me. Once I rolled out the dough, I showed the younger kids what to do and let them cut out the cookies while I put them on the trays and put them in the oven. Once the timer dinged, I took them out and transferred them to the cooling rack.

We'd just finished when Stephanie and Ranger walked into the kitchen.

Dad smiled at me as he reached for one of the cookies and bit into it.

Steph's eyes got round as she said, "I thought you didn't eat desserts."

Dad chuckled. "This isn't dessert, Babe. It's an important part of the food pyramid."

Aunt Ella laughed as she walked into the kitchen. "They are his one weakness when it comes to food." She paused with her brows furrowed. "Well, there are corn dogs too, so I guess you could say he has two weaknesses."

Steph smiled as she leaned into Dad. "Good to know." She turned to the rest of us and asked, "Are you guys ready to go upstairs and have some lunch?"

Casey ran over to Steph and raised her arms in the air as she squealed.

Steph lifted her up, and we all headed for the door.

As we were walking through the apartment, Aunt Ella said, "Everything should be ready. You just have to take it out of the oven."

Steph grinned. "Thanks, Ella."

The Morellis joined us in the hall, and we all rode the elevator up to Dad's apartment. Steph turned to me and asked, "Julie, would you mind showing Robyn where she can lay Caleb down?"

I nodded my head and took her to my room. I got the pack and play out and set it up so that Caleb would have a safe place to sleep.

She smiled at me. "Thank you, Julie. And I really appreciate your helping to keep the kids occupied while Joe and I talked with your dad."

I grinned. "It was fun."

We went back to the kitchen where the others were. Steph had the kids at a smaller table, and I went over to join them. When I saw the pizza in the middle of the table, I was excited. This was one of my favorite meals, and I didn't get it very often. I looked up at Steph. She winked at me, and I grinned back at her.

It didn't take us long to finish lunch. When I was finished, I walked over to the other table where the grownups were and asked Dad, "Can we watch a video in the den?"

He winked at me. "That would be great, Jules."

I couldn't help but smile. I always felt warm when he called me that. I went back over to where I'd been sitting and asked, "Would you guys like to watch a movie?"

They all spoke at once, saying, "Yes!"

I turned to the grownups table, as they were all laughing. I smiled too, feeling like I was one of the grownups.

It didn't take long to find a movie that we all wanted to watch. _Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs_ was the winner, and we all settled in to watch.

Casey didn't seem to be as in to the movie as the boys were, and I was puzzled why she was so insistent on this being the show she wanted to watch. She was looking around as if she was searching for something to do. She seemed to be looking at something on the coffee table, and when she lifted Steph's photo album, I moved over to sit beside her on the sofa.

I knew that Steph didn't mind people looking at her photo album, but I just wanted to make sure that it didn't get ruined in some way accidentally.

Casey sat back on the sofa with her knees bent and her feet flat on the cushion as she placed the book on her thighs.

Some of the faces she made as she looked at the photos were kind of funny, and I wondered what she was thinking. Suddenly, she seemed to freeze. Her eyes got really big, and there was a look on her face that made me feel sick to my stomach. Before I could decide what to do, she let out a blood-curdling scream and kept screaming.

I didn't know what to do. I was so scared.

In the next instant, Aunt Steph was there along with the rest of the grownups. She took Casey in her arms and talked to her in a soothing manner that she'd used with me when I had really bad dreams. Aunt Robyn and Uncle Joe were beside us too, but Casey was clutching at Steph.

Dad moved over beside me and placed his hand on my shoulder. I felt safe and looked up at him.

He knelt down beside me. "Do you know what happened?"

I shook my head. My voice was no more than a whisper as I said, "She was looking at Steph's photo album and just started screaming."

Dad looked down to the floor where the photo album had fallen and picked it up.

Casey started crying harder, shrieking, " _No_! _No_! Bad man. Hurt kitty."

I was scared. Like the day when someone tried to take Casey from the backyard and then when I tried to stop them they tried to take me. As much as I tried not to, I started crying.

Dad lifted me in his arms as he spoke softly to me in Spanish. "It's all right, baby girl. You're safe."

I'm not sure how long Dad was holding me and talking to me, but when I looked around, C.D. and C.J. were standing beside their parents looking just as scared as I'd felt. Casey was finally calm, and she nodded her head at something Steph asked her.

Steph took the photo album and looked at the pictures on the pages. She frowned for a moment, and then her expression changed. She showed the pages to Casey and asked, "Who was it that scared you, Casey?"

Casey pointed to a picture of Uncle Kye and a man I didn't know.

I looked up at Steph and at the look on her face, I started feeling funny again. The look was gone almost as soon as it appeared, and she smiled at Casey and said, "All right, baby. Thank you for being so brave. I'm going to put the pictures away now, okay?"

Casey nodded.

It wasn't long after that that the Morellis left.

 **Stephanie's POV**

I was reeling from what I'd just learned. This was going to kill Kye, and I hated the fact that I had to be the one to tell him. I felt a hand on my waist and looked up at Ranger as I fought not to let the tears fall.

He didn't say anything, but I knew he was offering me whatever support I needed.

I smiled sadly and leaned my head against his chest for a moment before looking up to meet his gaze. "I need to go and get this taken care of."

"Why don't you ask him and Hector to come up for dinner?"

My gaze went to Julie, and I knew that wouldn't be an option. She'd been through enough today, and I didn't want to add to it. Shaking my head, I said, "I think it would be better if I talked to him at their place. Besides, I want to stop at the office and see what the search engines can find."

He nodded. "All right. I'm going to spend the afternoon with Julie."

At that, Julie lifted her head with a look of wonder. "Really?"

Ranger hugged her to him and said, "I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

Although I was sad about what I was going to have to tell Kye, I was happy that Ranger had been able to put a look of excitement back onto Julie's face. I leaned up and kissed him before heading down to my office on five. Once I got everything set in motion, I headed down to four, where Kye shared an apartment with Hector.

I knew that they were in. It was their routine when the two of them had days off during the week, and then on their weekends off they would head out of town. I knocked on the door and waited as I heard footsteps on the other side moving toward the door.

Hector was the one who answered, and his eyes narrowed as he looked at me. "What's wrong?"

I took a deep breath before saying, "I need to talk to Kye."

Hector stepped back to allow me to enter the apartment, and then he asked, "You want me to go?"

I shook my head. "No. I think Kye is going to need you to be here."

His gaze sharpened, but he didn't comment as he led me into the living room where Kye was sitting on the sofa. Hector sat down beside Kye, and I opted for the chair across from them.

I wiped my hands on my jeans as I tried to think of how to bring up the subject that I needed to broach.

Kye leaned forward, clasping his hands in front of him. "What's going on, Steph?"

I met his gaze and said, "After the meeting with Joe and Robyn, they came to the apartment to have lunch with us."

Kye nodded but remained silent.

I hesitated for a moment, and then I straightened up and continued. "After lunch, while Ranger and I were talking to Joe and Robyn, the kids were watching a video, and Casey started going through my photo album."

Kye seemed to stiffen and pale at the same time. He moved his hand, and Hector clasped it with his, which seemed to settle Kye a bit.

"God, Kye, I wish I didn't have to tell you this."

There was a look on Kye's face that told me he'd already guessed what I was going to say, but I had to say it anyway. "Casey freaked out when she saw one of the pictures." I hesitated. This was painful, and I hated having to do it. "Kye…she said that Bear was the one who hurt the kitty."

He lowered his head.

Hector's hand went to his back and he leaned in to say something to Kye, but I was too far away to hear what it was.

It was several minutes before Kye looked at me. "I've been thinking a lot about Bear recently…all the things that didn't add up. I wish I could say that this is a total shock, but if I'm honest, there at the end, I felt like Bear was two different people."

My eyes widened. "I never knew that."

Kye shrugged. "At the time, you needed to focus on catching a killer."

I moved so that I was sitting on the coffee table in front of them, and I took Kye's free hand in mine. "I had time for you, Kye. Always."

Our gazes met, and I could see the pain in his eyes. "I know. I just…"

I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around him. The next thing I knew, I was sitting on his lap and he was holding me tight. The sobs that broke from him had tears pooling in my eyes, and I tried not to let them fall, but it was a lost cause. Arms wrapped around us, and I lifted my gaze to see that Hector had enfolded both of us in a comforting hug.

The three of us sat there like that for what seemed like hours but was in fact not more than twenty minutes. Kye leaned back to look at me as he asked, "Did you start the search?"

"Yes."

"Promise me that you'll tell me what you find. No matter what it is."

I hesitated, but then I admitted that if our roles were reversed, I'd want the same thing. "I promise."

He hugged me closer, and the next thing I knew, he was sound asleep.

 **Rina's POV:**

It was nearly midnight when I slipped out of bed and made my way to where I knew the phone was hidden. I was determined to find the cord so I could make a call. I'd had enough of Thor's high-handed ways. The bastard!

I was a pro at moving around in the dark. After all, that was part of the defensive training I'd undergone with Joe and Stephanie as my teachers. I slowly made my way to the library, taking care not to make any noise. Once I was in the room, I looked around to see if I could figure where the missing cord might be hidden.

There were several potted plants, and I started out searching there. When nothing materialized, I switched to checking out the paintings to see if there was a safe hidden behind one of them. I stifled a sigh when I wasn't able to locate what I was looking for. I'd just decided to investigate the big mahogany desk when light flooded the room.

I stilled, careful not to give away the fact that he'd scared me with his sudden appearance, and turned to face my jailor. My eyes narrowed, but I refused to say anything.

Thor gave me a sardonic smile as he said, "Looking for something, princess?"

I stood silently, still refusing to say anything.

He stalked closer, and it was all I could do not to run screaming from the room. This was too much like what Avery had been putting me through. I locked my knees in place so they wouldn't give way and lifted my chin. After several minutes of silence, I lifted an eyebrow and sweetly said, "I was just looking for a book."

Thor stopped when his body was flush against mine and chuckled, "Try again."

I just stood there staring into his eyes defiantly as my hands clenched at my side.

His eyes narrowed, and then he leaned in. When his mouth was nearly touching mine, he said, "I suggest you get back in bed unless you want me to think you're making yourself available to me for pleasure, princess."

My knee moved, and it was only his fast reflexes that stopped me from doing damage to his favorite male appendage. He took hold of my arms and pulled me into him as his mouth swooped down. The heat was intense, and my heart started racing as the kiss seemed to go on forever. When he finally released me, he nudged me away from him and wiped the back of his hand across his mouth.

His heated gaze roamed over me before his eyes met mine. Once again he raised an eyebrow. "Or is that what this is about after all? Curious about whether you can fill in for Stephanie?"

Pain lanced through my chest, and I turned and hurried back the way I'd come. I knew he was in love with my sister. And no amount of wishing for things to be different was going to change them. When I got to my room, I slammed the door and locked it and then sank onto my bed as sobs racked my body.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

 **Thor's POV**

I looked down at the caller ID to see that Stephanie was once again calling. As much as I hated denying her anything, I wasn't ready to talk to her just yet. I knew she would think it was because I was in love with her and was angry because she'd played on that to get me to agree to keeping her kid sister in my home so I could watch over her…but she was wrong.

Oh, I was angry with her, but it had more to do with the fact that I had to be in such close quarters with Rina when what I really wanted was to be as far away from her as possible. Ever since the christening when I'd first seen her, I'd been trying to avoid contact. Now I was forced to live in the same house with her.

It hadn't been too bad when Millicent and Alice were here, but they were leaving today for a fortnight, and it would be just Rina and me. And after last night, everything was magnified. God…the taste of her sweet mouth…

The sound of splashing drew me to the sliding glass doors, and I looked out to see that Rina was once again swimming laps. Although the weather was cooling now that winter was closing in, the pool on the patio was heated so I could use it all year long.

As I watched, Rina reached the edge of the pool and pulled herself out of the water. I couldn't help the reaction I had to her. It was ten times more intense than what I'd ever felt for Stephanie.

Rina grabbed the oversized towel off the lounge chair and wrapped it around herself. She looked around, seeming to scan the area around her. She looked so incredibly sad. I wondered if the incident last night was part of the reason.

I clenched my jaw as my hands bunched into fists. I couldn't go soft around her. Although she was only nine or ten years my junior, we were worlds apart when it came to experience. I was way too old and jaded for her. Although I didn't hate women the way Ranger had before he'd met Stephanie, there was no place in my life for one other than my sister and niece. The gruffness I'd perfected in dealing with women helped to distance me.

Once again my gaze was drawn to Rina. She sank down on the lounger, and I rubbed a spot on my chest as I watched her. Although she wasn't sobbing or making a lot of noise, the single tear that slid down her cheek screamed volumes.

With a limited motion, I slid the door open and stepped out onto the deck. I moved till I was standing over her, much like I had the day before. Although I hadn't said anything then and had gone back inside to leave her on her own, I found I couldn't turn away from her. Sitting down on the lounger next to where she was, I noticed that she'd turned so that she was facing away from me. The corner of my mouth lifted into as much of a smile as I would permit.

We sat for several minutes in silence. Although I could see the tears falling down her cheek, not once did she make a sound. The longer this went on, the more I had to press against the spot on the left side of my chest. As hard as I tried, the pain refused to go away. When I finally gave up and decided to break the silence, Rina got up and moved gracefully into the house.

At first I was at a loss as to whether to go after her or let her be…but in the end, I couldn't stand the thought of her crying alone in her room. I stood and followed her to the bedroom where I'd placed her when I brought her to my home. I got there just as she was getting ready to shut the door, and I put my foot out so the door wouldn't close.

She turned to face me, and it didn't surprise me that she looked even more beautiful after she'd been crying. Her voice was whisper soft as she asked, "What do you want?"

I shrugged. Not really sure exactly what I did want or what I was expecting.

She moved toward me and used her balled-up fists to hit my chest.

I took a wrist in each of my hands and brought her closer so that I could wrap my arms around her. She tried to fight me, but her heart didn't seem to be in it. After a few more seconds, she collapsed against me, and this time the sobs came along with the tears.

 **Celia's POV**

I watched as Daniel talked with our host. The dinner had gone rather well the night before…other than the fact the Mr. Mill's wife was more interested in getting in my boss's pants than her husband was in getting his signature on the contract. And that was saying something because Albert Mills was so keen to get Daniel's signature that he'd practically told him he had cart blanche in naming anything he wanted.

As a red herring, Daniel stayed close to me and gave the impression we were more than boss and employee.

Albert had been giving me leering looks, and his wife Dee kept glaring at me.

Daniel was of course quite aware of this and made sure I was even closer to him than I'd been before. He'd also started glaring at Albert, which caused the man to pale since he was trying to get on Daniel's good side.

Tonight we were at a party that was being held in the Walnut Room at Macy's. Our hosts had arranged for a private party, which was quite a feat because they didn't take reservations. I supposed that if you offered them enough money, all things were possible.

The food had been delicious. They'd started us off with a cheese plate with manchego, humboldt fog, roquefort, brie, candied walnuts, apples, dried apricots, and sliced baguette as well as a salad with mixed greens, mandarin orange slices, almonds, and a toasted sesame dressing.

Once the waiters had cleared the tables, we'd been given a choice of three different dishes: grilled flank steak, caramelized salmon, or asiago-crusted chicken. I opted for the salmon, which came with faro risotto with Portobello mushrooms, green onion, and asiago cheese. Daniel chose the flank steak. Other than that, our dishes were the same.

The food had been wonderful, and when we finished, our host and hostess had led us to a building nearby where the rest of the party was to take place. Of course, that had been three hours ago, and I was more than ready to head back to the hotel and get some much-needed sleep.

On the other hand, Daniel didn't seem to be ready to leave anytime soon.

I stopped at the window and looked out at the night. I missed Julie something fierce and just hoped that she was having a good time with Ranger and Stephanie.

A hand rested on my waist, and I turned to see that Daniel had joined me. I was surprised at the heat I felt under his hand.

Daniel's eyes darkened, and he asked, "Are you ready to leave?"

I nodded.

He winked at me and then took hold of my hand and pulled me gently with him as we said good night to our hosts and headed back to the hotel.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

 **Stephanie's POV**

I was reluctant to leave Kye, even though I knew Hector was there for him and would do all he could. It had been Kye and me for so long that it was hard entrusting his care to someone else. I settled back on the sofa and planned to stay for just a bit longer, but at some point I must have fallen asleep, because the sound of muted voices was the first thing I heard as my eyes fluttered open. I looked up to see that Kye was looking down at me. I quickly sat up, asking, "Are you all right?"

He nodded. "I will be. To tell the truth, I think I knew there was something really wrong, but I just put it out of my mind."

I reached up to touch his cheek. "I guess there's truth in the old saying if it's too good to be true, it probably is."

He smiled sadly. "So…what are we going to do about this?"

"Like I said before, I started a search before I came down."

"Maybe we could check to see if anything has come through."

I frowned, but before I could say anything, Kye went on to say, "I meant what I said about wanting you to tell me, no matter what. I have to know, Steph."

Letting out a deep sigh, I stood up and hugged him tight. "All right, big brother. Let's go and find out if anything came through."

I held out my hand, which he took as he followed me toward the door. We headed out to the kitchen to find Ranger and Hector sitting at the table drinking coffee.

Hector's gaze went to Kye, and he must have been reassured at what he found there because he gave a brisk nod and motioned to a chair.

Kye sat down beside Hector, and I moved to the other side of Ranger to take the seat there.

Placing my hand into the one that Ranger held out to me, I asked, "Is Julie with Ella?"

"Yes. We had time to talk through what had happened, and she's feeling better."

Kye frowned. "What happened to Julie?"

I turned to him and said, "She was a bit scared at Casey's reaction."

Kye's elbows were on the table, and he bowed his head slightly before running his hands through his hair. "I need to know." He turned to Hector. "Did you get the chance to fix my laptop?"

Without a word, Hector stood and left the table, returning in a moment with the laptop in question.

Kye took it from him and turned the thing on before scooting it across the table to me.

I pulled it closer and logged in so that I could call up the search that was running. An image flashed on the screen, and I sat back in stunned disbelief. After several tense seconds, I turned the screen so that Kye would be able to see what was there.

I could only imagine that he was feeling just as confused as I felt. How could he do something like this to his own brother? How much of that time that he'd been in our lives was even real?

Kye shook his head and voiced what I'd just been thinking. "How could Critter do that to his own brother?"

"I know firsthand that just because you're family doesn't mean there is a bond there. Now that I look back at their actions, it does seem a lot like sibling rivalry. Critter would have been a good five years older, and I could see him being upset at the arrival of a baby brother."

Kye nodded. "It explains why he never introduced us to any of his family as well."

Hector placed his hand over Kye's. "So what do we do now?"

Kye's face hardened. "We find him and make sure that he can't hurt anyone else."

I nodded. A sudden thought came to me. "We need to warn Tina."

Kye's eyes widened. "You're right. She trusts Bear, so if she were to come up to him, her defenses would be down because she'd consider him a friend." His head whipped toward Hector. "Didn't you tell them at the front desk that if Bear came asking for me to let him in?"

Several things happened all at once.

Hector and Kye took off out of the apartment.

I'd no more than gotten my phone out to call Tina when an alarm sounded through the building and Ranger's phone started ringing.

 **Tina's POV**

I hated when Lester had to work the afternoon and evening shift. Of course, I hated it when he had to work the overnight shift as well. I had a terrible time sleeping when he wasn't in the bed beside me, and that was made worse by the fact I was tired all the time right now and ended up taking naps.

If by some miracle I did get to sleep, I totally freaked out on waking up if Les wasn't where I could see him. Just like now. I felt the panic getting worse. Damn it! This made me so mad. It was all because of those bastards.

Scrambling up the best I could, I started pacing. I'd talked to Jess about this, and it was the one thing we hadn't been able to work through yet. At this point, it was possible we'd never work through it.

I ran through all of my coping methods until I got to the "go for a drive." It was then that I remembered I'd promised Les I wouldn't go out without him. A low growl escaped, and I looked around for an alternative. That's when the idea came to me that I could still get a workout, I just needed to either go to the gym or use the stairs.

After changing into a pair of black yoga pants and a T-shirt, I headed for the gym. On leaving the apartment, I noticed one of the guys standing with his back to me as he waited for the elevator. I shivered and wrapped my arms around my waist as I turned and decided to take the stairs.

The sound of a door closing above me had me turning to glance back, and I noticed that the man who'd been waiting for the elevator was now looking right at me. There was something familiar about him, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was because the man was wearing a mask. My eyes widened as I turned around. I didn't want whoever it was to see the panic I couldn't keep from my face. Stepping up my pace just a bit I made it to the next landing and looked up at the security camera. I put my hand to my throat and allowed whoever was on monitors to see just how freaked out I was.

I'd just started down the next flight when an alarm sounded through the building. My heart started racing because I wasn't sure if there was a fire or what kind of emergency was the cause for the alarm. I glanced back to see where the man was behind me, and on seeing that he was nearing to where I was, I turned back around and started racing down the steps as I prayed for my babies to stay safe. The only thoughts racing through my mind were of Lester and how much I needed him to save me and the babies.

Just as I got to the next landing, the door opened, and there was Lester, his weapon drawn and pointed in the direction of the man following me.

Once Lester's free arm went around me, I turned back the way I'd come only to see that the man had disappeared. This couldn't be good. I turned back to Lester and asked, "What's going on? Who was that?"

Lester wrapped me in his arms as he led me out onto the third floor and down the hall to Bobby's office. Both Bobby and Jess were there, and I felt marginally better.

Bobby started checking me over as Jess talked to me in a soothing voice.

I opened my mouth to say something, but I was suddenly unable to say a word. Instead, I burst into tears.

Lester took me in his arms and held me close as I sobbed all over him.

 **Bear's POV**

I'd almost had her until that damn alarm had sounded. It had spooked her enough that she was able to gain enough distance that I couldn't catch up before the door opened and he was there.

I scowled. This had been my best chance of grabbing her, and now it was shot to hell. Looking around, I made my way back the way I'd come. I had to get out of here before someone caught me.

Just then, a door opened and I heard footsteps closing in. Taking out my gun, I readied myself to take out whoever was coming my way. That's when I heard his voice.

"They went this way. Let's spread out and find him."

My jaw clenched as I thought about the last time I'd seen him. My eyes narrowed, and I moved away from the men as fast as I dared. There was no use sulking about not getting what I came after. I needed to get out of here so that I'd have the opportunity to plan something else.

 **Alex's POV**

I read through the information that I had on Tina and made some notes. I was excited about working with her. This would be my third case with multiple births, and I wanted to make sure that I had everything in order so that I could make sure the births went as smoothly as possible.

The buzzing of the phone interrupted my concentration. Closing the file, I lifted the receiver and said, "Alexandria Marshall."

"Alex, this is Cam. The reason I'm calling is…well…uhm…I was wondering if you might like to have dinner with me."

I smiled as I remembered my newest patient's brother. He was one yummy dish and I'd have loved nothing more than to go out with him, but I didn't want to come off as too anxious. I placed the receiver next to my calendar and noisily flipped the pages, as if I was looking though my appointment book. After several seconds of this, I replaced the phone to my ear and said, "I'm free on Thursday evening."

I crossed my fingers as I waited for his response and then couldn't help but feel disappointed when he said, "Uhm, actually, I have to work that night. I was hoping that maybe we could have dinner tonight."

Biting my lip, I forced myself to wait a full minute before I said, "Well…uhm, sure. I could work that out."

"That's great. Can I pick you up at six?"

I silently pumped my fist and then took a deep breath before answering, "Sure. That would be fine. I'll just be getting off at that time. Do you mind picking me up from work?"

"I'll see you then."

There was a dial tone, and I sat there holding the receiver for several seconds before replacing it. My gaze went to the clock, and I sighed as I realized I still had to get through the next three hours before I could see him again.

Just then, Melinda's voice came over the intercom as she said, "Alex, your next appointment is here."

Pressing the button, I replied, "Okay, thank you. I'll be right there."

I stood and made my way toward the exam room. As I was getting ready to open the door, I shuddered as Dr. Ripley stopped beside me.

He gave me a leering look as he said, "I've heard that your specialty is pregnant women over fifty."

I nodded, not trusting my voice not to waiver if I answered him.

"I have a patient who could benefit from your expertise."

I dug my fingernails into my palm to keep myself from showing him any hint of fear. "I'm sorry, but I'm totally booked right now."

His gaze sharpened as he looked at me for several seconds, and then he hooded his eyes before saying. "Too bad. I'll have to look for an alternate, then."

The back door opened, and a man walked in. It was impossible to see his face because of the black hooded sweatshirt that he was wearing, but Dr. Ripley's face took on a scowl as he brushed by me and moved toward the man. He took him by the arm and hurried him toward his office.

I shuddered once more at having been so close to the man and then turned again to the exam room.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

 **Stephanie's POV**

It had been three days since the incident where a man had slipped inside RangeMan and come close to grabbing Tina. When Ranger had looked into it, he found out that the man had given his name as Bear and said he was there to see Kye. As far as he and the guys were concerned, the incident was over and they'd ensured that Bear wouldn't be able to get back inside the building without sending up an alarm.

Sitting in on the interviews that Ranger had had with the men involved, I couldn't help but notice that one of the new hires seemed extremely uncomfortable answering the questions Ranger had posed to him.

Once Ranger had dismissed him, I opened the laptop that I'd brought with me and typed in the information from the man's file so that I could start a search on him. My stomach felt like a troop of acrobats were going nuts doing flips, and that was always a bad sign.

The man in question was Preston Huntley—better known as Hunt. He'd been working at RangeMan for just over a month, and although his references had checked out, I'd never felt comfortable with his being hired.

Hal was the last one that Ranger had to talk with, and as Hunt left, Hal stepped into the office and shut the door. He nodded to me and then turned his gaze to Ranger. "I've written down everything that happened from fifteen minutes before the incident until thirty minutes after. Hunt and I were on front desk duty as I was showing him the ropes. A man came in claiming to be Bear, and I specifically told Hunt to keep him in the lobby while I checked with Hector. I moved to the conference room to do just that, when the door was locked and the intruder moved to the stairwell."

Hal fidgeted as he moved from one foot to the other, and then he continued. "I could see Hunt sitting at the front desk looking at his watch as I knocked on the door. He continued to look at his watch for approximately five minutes before he stood and shook his head and then looked around. He appeared concerned when he saw me and rushed over to let me out of the conference room. He apologized for not hearing me knocking sooner, that he'd had earbuds in listening to music. Only…I hadn't seen him remove anything from his ears, so I believe he was lying."

Hal's gaze flicked to me a moment before returning to Ranger. "I knew the intruder had a good five minutes on me, so I sounded the alarm to alert everyone there was a breach in security."

Ranger studied Hal for several moments before he said, "I appreciate that you want to give Hunt the benefit of the doubt, but I need to know your initial thoughts."

Hal hesitated before straightening, and then he said, "It's my opinion that he helped the intruder gain access."

I turned my laptop in Hal's direction. "Is this the man you saw?"

Hal's eyes widened. "Yes. That's him."

I nodded. "That's Bear."

Ranger looked down at the report Hal had handed him when he'd joined us, and his eyes narrowed. "I see you told Junior to have Hunt's activities monitored until I let him know otherwise."

Hal nodded. "Yes, sir."

Ranger turned to me, and the corner of his mouth lifted. "Have you gotten anything back on your search yet, Babe?"

My eyes widened. "How did you know I'd started one?"

"I saw your reaction to him."

Smiling wryly, I turned the computer so it was facing me and checked the search engines. Three photos popped up, and I swore as I once again turned the screen so the two of them would be able to see it as well.

Ranger took out his phone and in the next instant was saying, "Detain Hunt in one of the cells." He disconnected the call and said, "Good work, Hal. Dismissed."

Hal nodded and then turned on his heel and left the office.

 **Cam's POV**

After pulling into the clinic parking lot, I parked as close to the door as it was possible to get. I took a deep breath before I climbed out and tried to put what had happened at RangeMan out of my mind. After all, Bobby and Jess had spent over thirty minutes with Tina assuring everyone that she was fine and had suffered no adverse effects from the incidents of the afternoon.

I really wanted to get my hands on Bear and strangle the bastard for going after my sister. After all the times that the five of us had spent together as friends, now he does this? It just didn't make sense. Nothing about this made sense. Finding out that Bear and Critter were brothers, especially knowing that Critter had set Bear up for the beating he'd received…it was all damn confusing.

Taking a deep breath, I climbed out of the car and headed for the clinic entrance. As worried as I was about everything that had happened today, I was looking forward to spending time with Alex and getting to know her. I wouldn't have been able to keep the date if I hadn't been assured that Tina was okay, though.

I'd no more than stepped into the waiting room when Alex came flying through the door. The panicked look on her face had me putting my hand on my weapon as I scanned the area for danger.

She stopped in front of me and smiled weakly. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. It's just silly nerves. I don't like being alone in the clinic with one of my colleagues."

My eyes narrowed as I asked, "Has he made threats?"

She shook her head. "No, nothing like that. Being around Dr. Ripley just gives me goosebumps. I can't explain it. That's just how it is."

I nodded as if I understood and accepted her brushing it off, but I intended to talk to Stephanie when I got back to RangeMan and ask her to see what she could dig up on the good doctor. Holding out my arm, I smiled at Alex and asked, "Are you ready to go?"

She nodded, and I escorted her out of the office.

After assisting her into the passenger seat, I straightened and made my way to the driver's side. A movement at one of the windows caught my attention, and from the corner of my eye, I caught sight of an older man peeking through a curtain. I catalogued every detail I could so that I could add a physical description to give Steph as well. Keeping an eye on the window, I backed out of the parking slot, and just as I was putting the car in gear, another person joined the first one. There was something familiar about the second person, but I couldn't put my finger on just what it was.

I drove to a little Italian restaurant, Amigo Mamacita's, that Stephanie had introduced us to shortly after she and Ranger had returned to Trenton. Of course, the name didn't make sense, but they had the best Italian food I'd ever tasted, bar none. The owner was Eduardo Diega, a Mexican who'd come to the US when he was about four years old with his migrant worker parents. In his travels across the US, Eduardo had met Lucilita Monchelli, and the two had fallen in love. Lucilitia had followed Eduardo as he followed in his parents' footsteps and did migrant work.

The couple had three children who learned the benefit of hard work from their parents, and when their eldest son graduated from college, he'd talked his parents into letting him front the money so that they could have their dream that they'd been working so hard to achieve. He'd bought them a rundown building, and the family had banded together to remodel the place. After twenty years in business, the family could well afford to remodel the restaurant so that it was as upscale as all of the others in the franchise, but for sentimental reasons, Lucilita and Eduardo had opted to keep this restaurant just as it was when they'd first started.

After pulling into the curb, I turned to Alex and said, "I hope this is all right with you."

She smiled. "Are you kidding? This is my favorite place to eat. I come here at least once a week."

I grinned.

We made our way inside and were shown to an intimate table for two. Once we'd ordered, we talked about a variety of topics. I was so in tune with Alex that I wasn't even aware of the waitress bringing our food or of eating it. All of a sudden, I looked down at an empty plate, and as I looked at my watch, my eyes widened to see the two of us had been sitting there for nearly three hours.

When the bill came, I paid for dinner and then reluctantly took Alex back to the clinic so that she could retrieve her car. I made sure that she was situated inside and then followed her home so that I could make sure that she made it there safely. When we arrived there, I walked her to her door and then kissed her cheek before asking, "Can I see you again?"

She nodded. "I'd like that very much."

I couldn't help grinning like a fool as I made my way to my car after she'd gone inside.

 **Dr. Ripley's POV**

Watching her walk away from the clinic, I let my mind wander over ways of getting what I wanted. She was the perfect person to deliver my child, and I would make sure I had her where I wanted when the time was right. This child was important to me, and I refused to let her deny me.

I let the curtain fall back in place as I turned to my middle son. "I want that bitch under Harper's control before the week is out."

He shook his head. "I was close, but that idiot must have let the other one out too soon."

My eyes narrowed. "I'm surrounded by incompetence. If you don't want me to go after your little friend, you better get me the other one."

"I will. It'll make more of an impact this way. It'll hurt her more for her friend to go through all of what Harper has planned than if he did it to her personally."

I nodded. "I'll accept that for now. But like I said, if the other one isn't at the warehouse before too long, I'll give your brother the go ahead."

He nodded. "I'll get her. I just need a little more time."

A sound from the monitor had me going over and checking in on my pet. I smiled as I saw the terror on her face as she looked into the mirror. Turning the volume up, I heard her swearing at me that as soon as she got free, my bastard child would be dead.

My eyes narrowed as rage filled me. Softly I said, "No, my dear…you will never kill another child of mine. But if you do a good enough job with this baby, I might let you live to carry another of my seed."

I grinned.

"Are you sure she can't get free?"

I nodded. "Of course."

My gaze moved to him.

There was a look of almost hatred on his face as he looked at my pet. After several seconds, he finally said, "What are you going to do if it's a boy and not a girl?"

I shrugged. "I'll have another student to teach the ropes."

He frowned. "I don't understand why you want a daughter if you hate women."

I smiled. "I don't hate women. I love to hurt them. It excites me. I never thought I wanted a daughter, but Jeanne Ellen worshipped me. She liked to play the dominant with men, and as much as I liked to hurt women, she liked to hurt men. There was only one she couldn't hurt. He was too strong for her, and she fell in love with him. I never knew who it was, but if I find out, I'll be sure to cut his heart out for not loving my princess."

I turned back to the monitor and felt my excitement grow as I watched my pet struggle to get free. As I watched, I remembered what I'd done to her and how much I'd enjoyed hurting her. The memory of her screams had me reaching down to loosen my pants so that I'd be more comfortable. Soon…soon I'd have my baby girl again.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

 **Rina's POV**

I rocketed to a sitting position on the bed as a scream left me. Panic was the only thing I could feel. The feel of Avery's hands around my throat as he squeezed to the point that I couldn't breathe was the only thing I could think of. It reminded me of our last date when I'd thought he was going to rape me before I could get away from him.

The door burst open, and Thor stood in the doorway with a gun in his hand. His gaze moved around the room, and when he saw that I was alone, he lowered the weapon and moved over to the bed.

We'd fallen into an uneasy truce, basically ignoring each other unless we had to be in close proximity. My heart was still beating fast as Thor moved into the room and sat gingerly on the side of the bed.

His gaze met mine as he asked, "You want to talk about it?"

A laugh escaped, but it was by no means a happy sound. "Why? So you can tell me how much better Stephanie would have handled it?"

His eyes narrowed, and I felt my cheeks heat as he said, "You could learn a lot from your sister."

I rolled my eyes and pulled my knees up so I could wrap my arms around my legs. "I know that. I love my sister and I think she's great…"

He broke in before I could add anything more. "You have a weird way of showing it."

I closed my eyes and vowed to remain silent until he'd left, but then his hand moved to cover my knee as he said, "They're making progress. You'll be able to return home just as soon as they have this guy caught."

"I know they're working on it. I just hate the feeling of being trapped here."

His eyes narrowed as we looked at each other.

I wasn't sure what to expect, but it wasn't what came out of his mouth next.

The corner of his mouth lifted and he said, "Then get dressed so we can blow this joint for a while." With that, he stood and left the room.

I was stunned for several seconds and then threw the covers back and rushed to get ready. When I joined him in the den ten minutes later, I self-consciously lifted my hand to my chin to make sure there was no drool there.

Thor was dressed in form-fitting blue jeans, tight black T-shirt, and a black leather jacket. His eyes traveled over me, and I felt the heat in his appraisal. Wordlessly, he held out his hand, and I placed mine in his palm. He led me through to the garage, where there was a black Ducati sitting there ready to ride. Thor took the two helmets from the bike and handed me one before he put his own on.

He climbed on, and then I slipped onto the seat behind him. In no time we were racing away.

 **Celia's POV**

It was late when we returned to the hotel room, and I was feeling relaxed after the two glasses of champagne that I'd had. The evening had been like a fairy tale with dining and dancing. Although I had my suspicions that Daniel was keeping me close so that Mr. Mills's wife didn't try to come on to him, the allusion that I was part of a couple again was tempting my imagination into fantasies I wasn't ready for.

Once the hotel door closed us off from the rest of the world, Daniel turned away with the comment, "Run to your room now where it's nice and safe."

His words were like a slap in the face, and I did a quick double-take. He was standing by the window looking at the scene outside.

I opened my mouth to give him a sharp retort when he turned to me with a sardonic look. "Come now. Surely you don't think it's a secret that you are too afraid of life to take a chance?"

Pain sharper than I'd felt since Reggie died lanced through me, and fighting to keep my emotions from my face, I lifted my chin before turning on my heel and walking away. When I reached the room that I was using, I let the door slam with as much force as I could possibly muster. A second later my walls crumbled down and I threw myself across the bed as huge racking sobs took over.

I'm not sure exactly how long I lay there crying, but the sound of someone knocking on the door was the next thing that I heard. I lay still, refusing to answer.

The side of the bed dipped, and I stiffened. I hadn't heard the door opening or someone approaching the bed.

A deep sigh sounded behind me, and Daniel said, "I'm sorry. I had no right to take my vicious mood out on you."

My eyes closed, but other than that I refused to move.

Daniel's chuckle was deep and sent heat racing through me. "Not going to forgive me that easily, huh? I have a surprise for you if you'd care to join me in the sitting room."

It was all I could do to remain motionless. One thing I was lousy at was holding a grudge, and that's what it felt like I was doing.

Daniel sighed once again and then leaned down so that he could whisper in my ear. "I've arranged for you to talk with your daughter in less than one minute, and if you don't come with me now, she's going to worry about you being okay."

Julie! Somehow he'd found the one thing that I wanted more than anything. It had been nearly a week since I'd seen my baby, and from what I'd heard tonight, we were going to be out of town another week at least if not two.

I scrambled off the bed and hurried into the bathroom so that I could fix my face the best I could to hide the fact that I'd been crying. Thirty seconds later, I was racing through the bedroom so that I could be in the sitting room in time to see my baby.

 **Ranger's POV**

Sitting on the sofa with my arm wrapped around Stephanie, I studied the image of Celia that was visible via Skype. I wasn't as familiar with her now as I'd once been, but the one thing I knew was that she'd been crying. From the way she reacted to the man seated not too far away from her, I made a guess that he was the reason for the tears.

With my free hand, I reached for my phone and sent a text to Diaz. Celia hadn't contacted him yet, and I wondered if it was because she didn't want to worry us that she couldn't handle a situation herself. It didn't matter… Diaz would be checking in with her and keeping an eye on Wolfe. If he was responsible for Celia's unhappiness, I was more than happy to give him an up front and personal view of some third-world country.

Julie was thrilled with getting to talk to her mother. Although I'd been able to reassure her yesterday after the incident with Casey, it was obvious she still wanted some reassurance from her mother as well.

Listening to the two of them talk, I let my thoughts wander to the discussion I'd had with Hunt.

 _The minute I walked into the cell, he looked at me defiantly. "I'm not going to tell you anything, so you might as well turn me over to the police."_

 _I shook my head. "That won't be necessary. You don't need to tell me anything to be of use to us."_

 _There was a crack in his bravado, and the first hint of fear filtered through._

 _I smiled as I stepped closer. "One thing you forgot to take into consideration when you decided to help the enemy, Hunt."_

" _Wh…Wh…what's th…th…that?"_

 _By now I was standing toe-to-toe with the traitor. I leaned forward just enough so he was the only one to hear as I said, "I meant what I said I'd do if I caught a traitor in my company."_

 _His eyes widened._

 _I smelled his fear and nodded as I proceeded to show him exactly what I would do. By the time I walked away three minutes later, the blob on the floor that at one time had been Hunt wouldn't be giving us any more problems in the future._

 _I stopped next to Hector and switched to the Spanish that I'd grown up with as I said, "_ You know what to do with him. Make sure it's visible and the message is clear _."_

 _Hector smiled. "_ Consider it done. _"_

I was brought back to the conversation between Julie and Celia as the two were saying their goodbyes. I was happy to see that my sister looked more relaxed and Julie was more at ease after having talked with her mother. Although Julie was my biological daughter and I now loved her wholeheartedly, back when she was born, I wasn't in a good place and the best thing I did for her was to take her to my sister, Celia, and ask her to adopt her. It wasn't until Celia had to have surgery to remove a cancerous tumor that I'd gotten to know Julie and come to love her.

 **Kye's POV**

I'd wanted to go with Hector on the task that Ranger sent him on, but he'd told me it was something he had to do on his own. Instead I headed to the gym and spent an hour beating up a bag before taking a shower and coming up to the apartment that I shared with Hector. Now here I sat staring at the TV without taking in anything of what was showing on the screen.

Instead, my mind was going over the last time I'd seen Bear. He'd been out of the hospital for three weeks and was pretty well healed physically from what those bastards had done to him. I think Stephanie had sensed something, because she said she was going over to Tina's for a bit to give Bear and me some alone time.

She'd been gone less than five minutes when Bear had walked out of the bedroom.

" _We need to talk, Kye."_

 _I looked up, trying to be as supportive as I could. "Have a seat."_

 _He shook his head. "I can't do this. I don't know if I'll ever be able to feel comfortable in a relationship again."_

" _I'm willing to do whatever you need to help you work through this."_

 _His gaze met mine. He studied me for several seconds before he whispered, "I need you to let me go. Let me move on from here and start over."_

 _I stared at him for several seconds and then raised a shaky hand to run through my hair. "I love you, Bear. I'd rather you stay here with me and we work through this together, but if you feel you need to start over…if I can't be a part of your life…then I want you to be happy."_

 _He nodded. "I'm sorry, Kye. I really do love you…but I just can't do us anymore."_

 _He lifted the duffle from the floor beside him, and that was the first I realized that he was packed and ready to go. When he got to the door, he turned and said, "I'll never forget you."_

The sound of the door closing brought me back to the present, and I looked up to see Hector was standing there watching me. I took a deep breath and said, "I want to forget."

He moved over beside me, and put his hands on my shoulders, and started to massage them. "He was part of your life. Good and bad. Time to let go."

I laughed harshly. "I thought I had."

He pressed his hands into my shoulders, and I moaned.

"You haven't let go. He still has power to hurt you."

I shook my head. "I'm happy being with you. I never felt like this with him."

"But you can't get past that you weren't enough for him. Now you wonder if you're enough for me…or any man."

I nodded.

Hector leaned down and opened his mouth on my skin. He ran his mouth the length of my neck, allowing his tongue to taste the salty skin on my nape.

I groaned as my head flopped forward, giving him better access. I turned to him, and his mouth covered mine. Our tongues dueled for several moments, and then he reached out for my hand and pulled me up.

He led me through the apartment to the bedroom. In seconds we were both naked, and I put all the love I felt for him in our pairing.

Eventually, Hector pulled the covers over us and held me while I lay there looking at nothing as everything swirled around in my mind. I felt safe and loved in his arms and wanted to stay there forever.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

 **Stephanie's POV**

It had been a week since Julie had talked with Celia through Skype, and seeing her today, I couldn't help but wonder if Daniel Wolfe was more to her than just her boss. Looking at her as she interacted with him, I saw a resemblance to how Ranger and I danced around each other in the beginning.

When they'd first arrived to pick up Julie, Ranger had asked to see Daniel in his home office, and whatever he'd said to the man, you could feel the animosity between the two of them. As a matter of fact, they'd been in Ranger's office so long that I'd gone to check on them. I'd been just in time to here Daniel say, "I'm not some wet-behind-the-ears Army Ranger. I was Delta Force before you ever thought about joining the service."

Ranger's voice was deadly soft as he'd said, "I wasn't _just_ an Army Ranger."

There was a cold silence for several seconds until I'd broken it when I knocked on the door.

Gone was any sign that just seconds before Ranger was ready to tear a man limb from limb when he said, "The door's open, Babe."

I stepped into the room and studied both men. I hesitated for only a moment but then decided this was something that needed to be brought up. "My stomach is all tied in knots."

Ranger's eyes narrowed, and I could see the wheels turning trying to figure out where the danger was, but Daniel glanced at me as if I was a bug he was going to squash. He sneered as his gaze moved back to Ranger. "I don't think I'll worry too much about your threat, Manoso. After all, if you let your…woman interrupt you with trivial bullshit…"

He didn't get the chance to finish his thought. Ranger had him against the wall with his hand in a fist around Daniel's tie. "Keep your filthy mouth shut."

Daniel's eyes grew mocking as he asked, "Or what? You'll rough me up? You don't scare me, Manoso. I told you, I was Delta Force."

I moved forward and did the best I could to step between the two men as I faced Ranger. "Let him go. We have more important things to think about right now. Who do you have that can keep an eye on Celia? Did Diaz come back with her?"

Ranger released his hold and stepped back.

I stayed between the two but turned so that my back was to Ranger. After all, I trusted him with my life.

The look on Daniel's face was comical. He threw his head back and laughed. "Who would have thought that a man in your position would publicly let a woman lead you around like a lost puppy?"

My eyes narrowed as I moved, and the next thing Mr. Daniel Wolfe knew, he was looking up at me from the floor where I'd put him.

There was a wary look in his eyes as he studied me and then looked past me to the smile that I knew would be on Ranger's face.

I glanced back at Ranger, and he nodded. "I can send Diaz to watch over her. You think she and Julie might be targets?"

I was about to say that was exactly what I thought when Daniel moved like an angry cat stalking prey. "Why would Celia and her daughter be targets?"

Ignoring him, I frowned as I suggested, "I could call Dad and see if he has any contacts in the area that he would trust to help us out."

Ranger hesitated, but in the end he nodded. "All right."

I glanced at Daniel to make sure he was behaving and moved to the desk to make the call. A smile slipped onto my face as the call was answered and I heard my father say, "What can I do for you, pumpkin?"

"Dad, Ranger's sister, Celia, is heading home with Julie today, and we're concerned that they might be targets."

"Say no more. I have a couple of contacts in the area, and I can give them a call to see if they can help us out."

My smile grew. "That's great. Can you give me names?"

"There are two men in that area…one works for the other. Blade was a member of Seal Six, and Wolfe was Delta Force."

My stomach started doing flips as I looked at Daniel. "Do you have a first name for the second one?"

Dad chuckled. "Daniel Wolfe. Since leaving the service he's made a fortune. Owns a company called Lobo Industries."

I smiled weakly. "Thank you, Dad, but I'll take care of contacting him."

"You better let me do it, pumpkin. Wolfe is a lot like Ranger was before he got his head out of his ass."

I grinned even though he couldn't see me and said, "Yes, but he's standing here in Ranger's apartment, so I think he'll at least listen to us."

There was a pregnant pause before he said, "In that case, let me speak to him for a moment, will you?"

I held out the phone to Wolfe. "Someone would like to talk to you."

He raised an eyebrow but made no move to take the receiver.

I pressed the speaker button and said, "He thinks his arm is broken, Dad. Go ahead. I'm sure he'll hear you."

"Wolfe, my daughter isn't someone you can play games with, is that understood?"

At the first sound of Dad's voice, Daniel stood at attention. "You're daughter, sir?"

Dad chuckled. "Daniel Wolfe, meet my daughter, Stephanie Morelli, better known as Agent J."

Daniel's eyes widened in disbelief. "Son of a bitch!"

"Watch your language. And just ask Ranger what will happen if you hurt my baby."

With that, the call was disconnected and there was a dial tone.

Daniel's eyes narrowed on me. "So…why don't you tell me what's going on."

Over the next twenty minutes, I told him everything that had happened over the last few months and what we'd found out more recently.

When I finished, there was a hard look in his eyes as he gave a quick nod. "Don't worry. Blade and I will make sure that Celia and Julie are well taken care of. I have a ranch in the middle of nowhere, and I can take the two of them there until this is all over."

Ranger nodded. "Just see to it that you don't hurt either one of them in the process, or you'll answer to me."

Daniel grinned. "So, Ranger, what will happen if someone hurts Stephanie?"

Ranger lifted the corner of his mouth wryly and said, "The same thing that will happen if you hurt Celia or Julie. You'll get dropped off in the middle of some third-world country with no more than the clothes on your back and a compass." With that, he turned and walked out of the office.

Daniel chuckled. He looked at me, and I could see him studying me before he asked, "He doesn't really think he would get away with that, does he?"

My eyes widened. "Well, I wasn't there when Dad sent Ranger, but I have no doubt that Ranger is more than capable of doing what he says."

The look of shock in his eyes before I turned and followed Ranger told me that we'd given him a lot to think about.

Celia was looking at Ranger with horror when I walked into the den. "Are you sure this is necessary?"

He put a hand on her arm. "I wouldn't insist if I didn't think it was necessary. It's for both of your protection."

Celia turned, a glare forming on her face as she looked past me to where I assumed Daniel had joined us. "I'll do this for Julie. But only to keep her safe."

Daniel nodded. "We need to get on the road. I've already contacted Blade and told him what's happening."

Celia lifted her chin and turned away from Daniel. She kissed Ranger's cheek and said, "Please let me know the instant it's safe."

Ranger leaned down to whisper something, but I was too far away to hear just what it was.

Julie came over and hugged me. I smiled down at her and then whispered in her ear, "If you need us for any reason, you can call."

She nodded.

I hugged her close, and we said our goodbyes. Something about the way Daniel looked at Celia as they left had me thinking that the next few weeks were going to be quite interesting for the two of them.

 **Tina's POV**

There were no two ways about it… I felt huge. How the hell could my body morph this much in three weeks? Less than a week after we'd gone shopping, I was unable to fit into any of my old clothes, and I was now wearing the new clothes I'd bought during that trip. The following week I'd lost the ability to tie my own shoes, and now this week add to all the rest that I couldn't even get out of a chair or the sofa without a forklift…or Lester's hand to help pull me up.

I pouted as I looked into the mirror. Running my hand over the baby bump that now resembled a giant medicine ball, I sighed as I said, "Don't get me wrong, kiddos. I love you all very much, but Mommy doesn't know how the three of you grew so much overnight. I thought I'd have more time to get used to this."

Laughter from behind me had me looking over my shoulder to see that Les had joined me. He wrapped his arms around me, and his hand went to rest on my abdomen. "Are you lecturing the babies already, gorgeous?"

I stuck my tongue out at him as I crossed my eyes.

Les waggled his eyebrows and whispered, "We have time to have a little fun before your appointment?"

I swatted his arm. "Your having fun is what got me into this shape."

He leaned down and whispered, "And we both enjoyed it thoroughly."

I moaned as his mouth covered mine, and the warmth I felt racing through me got hotter and hotter the longer our mouths clung together.

The muffled sound of a knock on the door brought us up for air. Les leaned his forehead against mine. "Whose idea was it to let your brother come with us for this visit?"

I laughed. "You know as well as I do that his main purpose for going along is so he can see Alex again. They've become quite the pair."

"I never thought I'd see the day that Shep was chasing his tail over a woman."

My eyebrow rose. "Remind you of anyone, does he?"

Les threw his head back as more laughter came out of his talented mouth.

The knock sounded again, and he moved away to go answer the door. Although I couldn't see the two of them, I heard Les saying, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, we're coming. Just chill, will ya?"

I moved through the apartment to join them, and there was a relieved look on Cam's face. "I'm glad to see you're ready. We need to hurry if you don't want to be late for your appointment."

I looked at my watch. "We still have forty-five minutes, and it only takes ten to get there."

Cam fidgeted. "You can never be too early. Besides, we need to keep the bastards guessing."

I glared. "You really know how to kill a good mood."

Cam moved forward and hugged me to him. "I'm sorry, sis. I just…"

I punched him in the gut playfully. "Yeah, I got your number. All right. Let's move out. Might as well get this show over with."

The three of us made our way down to the garage, and Les helped me into the SUV before taking his seat behind the wheel. Cam slipped into the back behind me, and then Lester waved his hand out the window to let the others know we were ready to roll.

I was spot-on when I said it would only take us ten minutes to get to the clinic. Cam and Lester sandwiched me between them as we moved into the building. I got the strangest feeling when we entered and looked around but didn't see anything that would be a cause for concern. I brushed the feeling away, putting it down to nerves because I knew Bear was out there somewhere looking for an opportunity to grab me or one of the others close to Stephanie.

We stopped at the receptionist's desk, and I told her, "I'm here to see Alex."

She smiled. "There are two people ahead of you. If you'll just have a seat, the nurse will be out shortly to call you back."

When they were designing the room, comfort wasn't high on their list. I opted for one of the larger seats that would allow Lester to sit beside me, and Cam chose the chair on my other side. I sat back and leafed through a Motorcycle Monthly magazine while we waited.

I was looking at the centerfold when Lester leaned over and whispered, "Do I need to be jealous?"

I answered absently, "Huh?"

He chuckled, and the magazine was gently removed from my hands.

I looked around and glared at him as he sat there looking at the page I'd been looking at. "What was that for?"

His eyebrow rose. "I asked if I needed to be jealous and didn't like your distracted answer. I decided to see for myself. What's this guy got that I don't?"

I grinned. "A kick-ass tattoo."

He looked at the tattoo in question and then back at me. "That interests you, does it?"

I nodded. "Oh, yeah!"

He tore the page out of the magazine and folded it up before putting it in his pocket.

I frowned. "What did you do that for?"

He waggled his eyebrows. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Tina?"

I looked up to see that the nurse was standing in the doorway looking my way. I tried to stand but had no luck until Lester held out his hand so that I could put my hands in his as he gently helped me up.

The nurse's eyes widened. "Wow!"

I glared at her. "If you want to keep your lovely head of red hair, I'd shut it. I'm not feeling too great about my enormous size at the moment, and I sure hope my skin remembers what it's supposed to do once these babies are born."

She laughed. "Not to worry. You'll be so busy keeping up with the three of them you won't have any trouble."

We followed her to an exam room, and it wasn't even five minutes later when Alex joined us. She looked a bit spooked, and I saw the instant worry on Cam's face.

Alex schooled her features to give the outward appearance of calm as she went through the routine of listening to the babies' heartbeats and checking all my vitals and everything. The last thing she did was the ultrasound. As she was getting everything set up, she asked, "If the babies are so generous as to display their gender, would you like to know?"

I looked up at Les.

His eyes were lit up, and I could see that he very much wanted to know.

I turned to Alex and nodded. "Sure. We'd love to know."

She nodded and then got down to the business of checking things out. There were several stops and starts, and her expression never changed. When she'd finished, she turned to us and said, "Congratulations. You are the proud parents of twin boys and a baby girl."

My eyes widened. "Wow! You can tell all that?"

"Yes." She smiled and then called up a screen shot and said, "Do you see this here? The boys have moved to either side of their sister, as if they've taken up a protective stance. Whenever I would move the wand close to her, they would move positions so that they always stayed between her and the wand. It wasn't until I moved it away that they switched positions so that I could see the third baby was a girl."

Tears slipped down my cheeks as I looked up at Les. "Our boys are looking out for their sister already. I pity the poor fool who hurts her."

Alex laughed. "Well, if this kick here is any indication, they'll be in a world of hurt."

"What do you mean?"

"I got too close with the wand, and this little one kicked the wand away."

I leaned my head against Les as the tears continued to flow. "That's just so sweet."

"Everything looks great. Just let Mandy know I'll need to see you in a month, and continue doing what you've been doing."

I nodded.

She smiled, and her eyes moved to Cam. From the look on her face, I could see she was as into my brother as he was to her.

The minute the door closed, Cam looked at me and said, "Uhm…I'm just going to wait outside while you do what you need to do."

Once he left the room, Les and I looked at each other and grinned like fools.

 **Rina's POV**

I pulled myself up out of the pool and looked around. I had a weird feeling like I was being watched but knew there was no way anyone would be able to find me here. Although I still wasn't happy with Thor's highhanded ways and not being able to contact my family, I had to admit I understood his reasoning.

I leaned down and lifted the towel from the lounger and spun around at the sound of the sliding-glass door opening. I smiled and was just about to say something when an alarm sounded. Thor's look turned fierce, and he took hold of my arm and rushed me into the house. He moved almost faster than I could keep up as he zigzagged through the house till he got to the one room I'd never ventured into. Thor hurried me inside and then hit a button by the door, and suddenly the room was morphing into some futuristic war room of some kind. Metal walls and doors slammed into place, and we were totally sealed inside with no way for anyone to reach us.

I looked around before hesitantly asking, "What is this place?"

Thor ignored me as he sat in the leather chair at the console and manned the computer. His fingers flew across the keys, and suddenly there on the screen I could see three men trying to get into the house.

My hand went to my throat when the locks tumbled and it looked like they'd been able to gain access to the house, but in the next instant three quick shots rang out and bullets entered all three of the trespassers. Each man fell to the floor to look up at the sky sightlessly.

I cringed as I tried to muffle the sob that escaped.

Thor turned to me with a sardonic look. "Surely you didn't expect them to be able to leave freely?"

Lifting my chin, I glared at him but refused to give him the satisfaction of commenting.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

 **Stephanie's POV**

It had taken me three weeks to narrow down possible hiding places that Bear might be using. At the same time, I'd been in constant contact with Constable Barney, and we'd set up a sting to catch Penelope in the act. It was our hope that, to save herself, she'd give up the whereabouts of the others.

Shep had offered to return to London so he could spearhead the sting, but after talking with Stitch—Shep's partner and right-hand man—we'd opted to have him run the sting over there to give us the added manpower to round up the rest of their group here.

Everything was set up so we would be able to watch the whole thing going down. I glanced at my watch and knew the action was scheduled to start in five minutes. No sooner had the thought formed than the conference room door opened and Dad, Ranger, Shep, Hector, Kye, and Rodriguez all walked in and took their seats so they could watch with me.

Stitch glanced up at the camera but otherwise gave no indication he was aware of being watched. He stood and took the file from his desk before he moved through the embassy until he was in the basement where Penelope's desk was located. He strolled into the area whistling—something he was noted for at headquarters.

Penelope looked up from her desk, and there was a flush on her cheeks as she looked up at Stitch. This was another reason we were using him instead of having Shep fly back. It was a well-known secret that Penelope had a crush on Stitch. At first I was against using that against her in the sting, but knowing she'd done the exact same thing to one of the other girls in the office in order to get confidential information somehow made it more palatable.

At least, that's how Ranger had explained it so that I felt less guilty about the whole thing. He'd said that Karma was a bitch, and in this instance, we were Karma coming back to bite her in the ass for what she'd done to Lily.

My attention was drawn to the screen when I heard Penelope's simpering voice say, "Stitch, what brings you down here?"

Stitch lifted the file and grinned. "Constable Barney asked me to look over a few things on the Whitechapel case."

Penelope's gaze sharpened as her eyes moved to the file in his hands. "Oh? Is that the file? I thought everything was over with that case. What are you checking out?"

Stitch shrugged. "This and that." He sat down on her desk. "How about opening up for me, love."

Penelope's face flushed once again, and she gave him a besotted look. Without taking her gaze from him, she said, "Uh-huh. Sure."

She handed Stitch a set of keys, and although her gaze appeared to sharpen when he set the folder down, she didn't say anything as he moved over to the cage area and unlocked it so he could move inside.

Penelope waited until Stitch was out of sight, and then she opened the middle drawer of her desk and took out a micro camera. She flipped through the file taking pictures, not even bothering to look up until there was a loud clang from where Stitch was. She quickly closed the folder and returned the camera to the desk.

Stitch walked out of the caged-off area and back over to her desk. He nodded. "Thanks. I found what I came after."

She smiled.

Stitch went to walk past her desk, and she called out to him, "Oh, Stitch, don't you need this file?"

Stitch gave her a worried look as he took the file and leafed through it before giving a sigh and saying, "Thanks." He grinned. "I can't tell you how much trouble I could get into if this information gets out."

Penelope smiled, and from where I was sitting, it looked like she was a bit sad that she was going to get Stitch in trouble by giving out the information in the file. Still, whatever she was feeling didn't stop her from taking out her cell phone and making a call as soon as she heard his footsteps on the stairs.

Hector moved forward and pressed a button, and the next thing I knew we were hearing the phone ringing.

I shivered at the voice that answered the call. I didn't recognize it, but from the way my stomach was swirling, I knew it was someone I didn't want to know.

His voice was oily sweet as he said, "I take it you're calling because you have some information for me?"

"Yes, Father. I have the information from the file."

"Good. Good. I need you to fax it to this number. Your brother will get it and take it from there."

"Are you sure it's safe to trust Bear?"

There was a hiss, and Penelope's look changed to one of fear. "I'm sorry, Father. I didn't mean to question you."

"See to it that it doesn't happen again. Bear is loyal to me, never doubt that."

"All right. I'll be leaving in just a couple of minutes, and I'll develop the film."

"No! I don't want you bumbling it. Take it to the apartment, and your brother will develop it. I just need you to fax the photos since he can't be seen in public yet."

The look on Penelope's face hardened, but she gave no clue as to whatever she was feeling to the man on the other end of the call. "Of course."

She ended the call, and her hands bunched into fists. With a look of rage, she brought both hands down on the desk and screamed. As if she suddenly became aware of where she was, she quickly looked around and then took the film out of the camera before once again putting the camera in the drawer and grabbing her things so she could hurry out of the office.

Just before she got to the point where we lost visual, Stitch stepped into place behind her so that he could follow and record all of her actions.

Hector turned off the feed, and we knew that this was the last we'd see until we looked at the recording tomorrow. By then we'd know where she sent it and a whole list of other things as well. Penelope would have no clue until she walked into work tomorrow that her freedom had just come to an end.

 **Bear's POV**

I looked over the fax that I'd just received. It gave us all the information that Father needed to move forward with his plan. I took out my cell and called Harper.

He picked up on the third ring, saying, "Did you get it?"

"Yes. I think it's time for you and the others to join us here."

"Do you have the bitch who killed Harley?"

"Not yet. I'm still working on it."

I could picture Harper's eyes narrowing in the same way Father's did when he was angry. The snarl was fierce as he said, "You better get her before I get there. After all, I think we should kill them all."

"Father gave his word. You'll stay away from the others."

"Not if you don't get me my toy."

My hands clenched as I held myself in check. I'd learned how to deal with my brother over the years, and what I wanted to say would only enrage him more, so I had to bide my time. "I'll get her."

There was another snarl, and then all I heard was a dial tone.

My eyes closed as I bent my head and clenched my fists. I wanted to punch something, but that wouldn't get me anywhere. The sound of a horn honking had me looking up. My gaze sharpened as I saw the SUV pull out of the garage. Finally! I smiled as I anticipated my success in acquiring my target. This was brilliant. They wouldn't know what hit them.

I pulled in behind them, and making sure to keep enough distance between me and them, I followed them to the clinic. A smile formed on my face as I anticipated watching the men run around trying to find her while I had her all trussed up right under their noses.

 **Celia's POV**

I stood smiling as I looked out the window watching Blade try to teach Julie how to ride a horse. She was making great progress, and I had to laugh as she continued to surprise both Blade and Daniel. I had to admit, Daniel was great with her, and as taciturn as Blade was with me, he seemed to be devoted to her.

Daniel had flown us to his ranch in Montana after we'd left Ranger's. Once we arrived, he'd introduced Julie and me to all of the ranch hands. Once Julie and I had gone into the house, I heard him telling them about the situation in Trenton and that he'd brought us there to safeguard us from harm.

Gertrude had joined us shortly after. I smiled thinking how she'd taken us to the kitchen and gotten us involved in making cookies.

Over the past month, Gertrude had spent that time mothering both Julie and me, and when I told her of the special diet restrictions I had, she didn't stop until she'd found out the reason. Once the tumor had been removed, I'd become anemic, so I had to eat foods rich in iron.

I was brought back to the present by the feeling of being watched. I turned to see that Daniel was indeed watching me.

"She's quite the fighter."

I smiled. "Yes. Although Reggie and I raised her, there is a lot of her father in her."

His eyes narrowed. "Why were the two of you raising her?"

I hugged my arms around my waist. "Ranger was in the military when she was born."

Daniel gave me a smirk. "I'll bet it was more like he didn't want to be bothered with a squalling infant."

I raised my chin. "That's none of your business."

He nodded. "You're right. You've done a good job with her. She's a great kid."

I studied his face for several minutes before saying, "Yes, she is." I turned back to the window before adding, "I have a lot to thank Stephanie for. Julie's really come out of her shell since she's been in our lives."

Daniel frowned. "I don't understand."

I smiled at him. "There's no reason for you to."

He chuckled. After a couple of minutes, he said, "There's an ice cream social in town this Saturday. Blade assured me that he can make sure that it will be safe if the two of you would like to go."

Julie joined us at that moment. The expression on her face telling me she'd heard what Daniel had said. She was practically bouncing on her feet as she asked, "Can we, Mom?"

I reached out and cupped her jaw with my hand. "Sure."

She turned and, in her exuberance, wrapped her arms around Daniel.

The stunned look on his face had me wondering what had happened in his life to make him what he was today.

 **Rina's POV**

The documentary was just ending when Thor made his way into the room. I stood, planning to make good my escape, but when I came even with him, he snaked out his hand and took hold of my arm. We stood there staring at each other for several minutes before his head swooped down, and the next thing I knew I was in a heated clench with him.

I meant to push him away, bringing my hand up to his chest, but instead my hand lay against his chest as I moved into him.

Suddenly he was setting me away from him with a growl as he said, "Run to your room, princess. You stay, and I'll take that as an invitation."

I turned and ran. Once I got to my room, I slammed the door before throwing myself down on the bed and bursting into tears. Why was he treating me this way? One minute hot and the next instant cold. What's more, why was I letting him?


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

 **Tina's POV**

My hands were shaking as I sat on the sofa waiting for Lester to get home so that we could head to the clinic. I was seeing Alex early because she would be out of town at a seminar in two weeks when my appointment had originally been scheduled. I couldn't get away from the feeling that something was drastically wrong.

The locks tumbled, and had I been in my pre-pregnancy condition, I would have been off the sofa and racing into Les's arms the second he stepped into the apartment, but I knew it was a lost cause in trying to get up without support.

Lester stepped into the den, and he instantly scanned the room before his gaze rested on me. "What's wrong, gorgeous?"

Shaking my head and feeling like I was going to burst into tears at any minute, I admitted, "I don't know."

He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me up into his embrace.

I clung to him as I fought the emotions that were bombarding me.

After several seconds, he leaned back to look at me as he said, "I hate to break this up, but we need to leave for the clinic if we're going to make it."

I hesitated. "I wish we didn't have to go. The closer it gets to the time, the worse I feel."

His eyes narrowed for a fraction of a second, and then his blank look slammed down and I knew something was up.

My eyes narrowed. "All right, Santos. What's going on?"

He leaned his forehead against mine and chuckled. "Stephanie said that I wouldn't be able to pull this off, and it looks like she was right." He took a deep sigh. "Do you trust me, baby?"

I folded like a marshmallow as I softly said, "Yes."

"I'm asking you to hold on to that trust and not ask me any questions. I'll tell you what I need you to do when I need you to do it…but it has to look genuine, and the only way to do that is to keep you in the dark."

I studied him for several seconds, and something about the look on his face told me that this was important to him. Finally, I nodded my head. "All right. I know you wouldn't do anything to endanger the babies or me. Let's get this dog and pony show on the road."

He leaned down and kissed me. There was so much emotion wrapped up in that kiss. He pulled back too soon and whispered, "Time to go, baby."

Once we were in the SUV, Les headed us in the direction of the clinic. My gaze was on the scenery outside the window, and it seemed like we were running into an inordinately large number of black SUVs and trucks. Almost every block there would be another one until we'd finally pulled into the clinic parking lot.

I waited for Les to get out and come around to help me out so we could make our way inside the clinic. The tension in the air was so thick you could cut it with a knife as I made my way over to the receptionist and told her that I was there to see Alex.

We were directed to have a seat, and as we waited, we were joined by a couple of other couples. From the appearance of the women, they were rather farther along in their pregnancies, but I didn't recall seeing them here before. Of course, if this was their regularly scheduled appointment, there was no saying I would have met them before.

The nurse came through the doorway and called me.

Les helped me up, and then he walked with me through to the exam room. We weren't in there more than five minutes when Alex joined us.

She smiled. "I appreciate you coming in today."

I grinned. "So where is this seminar that you're going to?"

She shook her head. "Would you believe New York? I'm really excited about going. I've never been to the 'Big Apple,' and since I have this opportunity, I thought I'd take in a couple of Broadway shows."

"I hope you have a great time. Is anyone going with you?"

She blushed. "Not going with me, but he'll be joining me Friday night when the seminar is over. We're going to spend the weekend there and then travel back together."

"I'll bet Cam shows up early."

She shyly looked away, busying her hands with rearranging the items on the tray in front of her before she softly admitted, "I wouldn't mind in the least."

She did the routine things that normally happened on one of my visits, and then when she was done, she smiled and said, "All of you are coming along nicely. We'll set up your next appointment in one month, but I'd like you to have Bobby check all of your vitals and levels in two weeks."

I nodded. "All right. I hope you guys have a great time in New York."

She smiled. "Thanks, Tina."

After she left, Les helped me to sit up, and we made our way into the hall. There was the sound of a door opening, and Les leaned down to whisper in my ear. "I need you to fall into my arms like you've fainted."

A split-second look into his eyes was all it took to know he was serious, and somehow I knew this was a matter of life and death…for me and the babies. I did what he said, and he gently lowered me to the floor before going down on top of me.

The splintering of wood above us nearly had me in a panic, but I trusted Les to get us out of this situation. Before I could think anything else, there was a commotion, and then Cam was saying, "It's all right, Les, we got him. You two can get up now."

Lester stood and gently helped me into a standing position before he led me over to where Bear was on the floor unconscious.

I looked up at Les. "So this is what was planned?"

He nodded. "We couldn't let on that we knew anything was coming and spook him into taking off."

I nodded and then snuggled closer to Les. "Does this mean it's over?"

He grinned down at me. "Looks that way."

 **Stephanie's POV**

It was nearly a week later when Stitch called to say the package was on the way to the States and we could set up the sting. It just so happened that the midwife that Tina was seeing had called to ask about moving the appointment up two weeks since she was going to be out of town when the appointment was scheduled.

Ranger called a meeting so that we could choreograph the takedown.

I knew the minute that the guys said they didn't think we needed to tell Tina that there'd be a problem. I'd grinned at Lester and told him he wouldn't be able to pull it off without Tina suspecting. We'd been friends a long time, and not only did I think she should know, but I also knew how smart she was. I had my Spidey sense to alert me to when there was trouble, and I strongly suspect she had something similar.

Lester left the conference room, and the rest of us scrambled to get in place.

While Lester went to get Tina for the appointment, Hal and Junior left for the clinic, where they were to meet Mary Lou and Connie—who had agreed to help us out with the distraction. The girls had spent the morning with Robyn, Angie, and Grandma Mazur getting made up to look like they were in their last trimester of pregnancy. They would be decoys so it looked like the guys had a legitimate reason for being in the waiting room.

Connie knew Alex's receptionist and had gotten her to add two appointments to the books for after Tina's. As a precaution, they'd go through with the appointment just in case there was someone else on this end that we hadn't counted on.

The rest of us made our way to our vehicles as well so we could get in place before Lester left the building with Tina. We had it worked out so there was a team at every intersection between RangeMan and St. Francis Women's Clinic where Alex held her practice.

Everything went beautifully until one of the doctors came out the back door. My stomach twisted in knots when I got a look at him, but he didn't have a chance to say or do anything before Bobby injected him with something that would put him under for a while.

Binkie lifted the man in a fireman's carry, and Ranger was in the lead when we went in through the back door. We were just in time to see Bear coming out of an office behind where Lester was standing, and Ranger said something in a guttural language that had Lester dropping and taking Tina with him.

Ranger and Tank moved forward and quickly took Bear down and had him in handcuffs before anyone knew anything about it. Binkie moved into the exam room and deposited the doctor on the table before rejoining us in the hall.

Tank and Cal lifted Bear between the two of them and carried him out to secure him in one of the vehicles.

Junior and Hal took care of cleanup at the clinic to make sure there was nothing to lead anyone in our direction as well as to monitor the situation to see if there was another party that we didn't know about. We would be meeting back at RangeMan in an hour. This one Tina would be part of.

Ranger and I were the first ones back, and most of the others had joined us when Tina and Lester walked in.

She glared at the guys as she folded her arms in front of her. "I don't know why you couldn't have included me in the little operation you just ran."

Lester put his hand on her shoulder, and she melted into him with a sigh. "I'm sorry, baby. I told them about your blood pressure being high at the last visit, and Bobby thought it might be easier for you to deal with the situation this way rather than having the added stress of knowing what we were doing."

Bobby shook his head before wryly replying, "Throw me under the bus, why don't you."

Tina shook her head. "Next time, tell me ahead of time. I'd rather know what's coming so I can be prepared for it."

Lester's eyes widened. "I'd rather there not be a next time altogether."

Tina grinned. "Me too…but you never know what's going to happen."

Bobby moved over beside her. "Speaking of blood pressure… I'd like to check yours to make sure you are doing okay after all of this."

Once again she shook her head. "No need…"

Before she could say anything else, Lester gave her a pleading look.

She rolled her eyes and gingerly sat in one of the chairs before holding out her arm.

Bobby chuckled as he checked her pressure.

The frown on his face sent Lester into a panic. "What's wrong? Is it too high? What can you do to make it come down? Damn it! I knew this was going to be too stressful for her!"

Tina laid a hand on Lester's arm. "Slow down. I'm fine." She turned to Bobby and glared. "Tell him I'm okay."

Bobby's eyes widened a fraction before he nodded. "She's okay…as long as she rests for the remainder of the day. Nothing to excite her." He looked directly at Lester before adding, "And I do mean nothing."

Lester nodded. "All right. We'll go home and take a nap."

Bobby opened his mouth to say something, and all of a sudden there was a look of discomfort on his face before he grimaced and said, "Uh…sure. I guess there wouldn't be anything wrong with the two of you taking a nap."

He went to add something, but the look of discomfort returned and he stayed quiet.

Lester and Tina left the room, and the rest of us looked at Bobby.

He smiled weakly. "Damn! That woman knows how to inflict the maximum amount of discomfort with those shoes. I think they should be declared a lethal weapon on her feet."

Everyone laughed.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

 **Kye's POV**

I stood there looking through the observation window. Even though we had all the proof to put the nail in his coffin, I still found it hard to believe that the man I'd once loved could do this to Stephanie. He would know above anyone else that she'd hurt more from watching what those monsters were doing to others than if they did it to her.

All the doubts that I'd had in the months leading up to the end made sense now, but even knowing I'd had my doubts…it just didn't sit right with me. I shook my head as I turned away. I was grateful that Hector wouldn't be the one questioning Bear. Although he was the logical choice, he'd asked Ranger to have someone else do it. As angry as I was at Bear for this betrayal, this was one thing I didn't need to see.

I'd loved Bear once, and even though I didn't want to, a part of me loved him still. It was just a different kind of love. The love I felt for Hector showed me that what Bear and I had shared didn't even come close to real love.

With a minimum of motion, I left the room and headed back to the apartment, where Hector was waiting. The minute I opened the door, he turned, and even though there was no outward expression on his face, I could tell that he'd been concerned.

Moving into the den, I sat down beside him. "There's nothing for you to be concerned about."

His hand came to rest on my thigh. "You okay?"

I leaned against the sofa back and raised an arm so it rested across my forehead. "Yeah. I'm okay… More sad than anything."

He leaned back beside me, and we sat like that for several minutes.

I thought back over my time with Bear, and something kept bothering me, but I couldn't put my finger on just what it was. I'd met Bear when Stephanie and I were working a murder case similar to the Whitechapel case. On one of our many nights off, I'd gone to the bar and Bear had been there. It was the one time I'd broken my rule about needing to know someone before sleeping with them.

I frowned. My eyes narrowed even more as I thought back to the next time Bear and I were together in bed. Nothing had seemed familiar, and I'd just assumed that I'd had too much to drink the last time and that's why I didn't remember.

Another thought crossed my mind, and I started to wonder if Bear and I'd actually been intimate that first time or if he'd lied.

Hector bumped me with his elbow. "Talk it out. Maybe it can help."

Nodding, I said, "I was remembering my first time with Bear. That was the only time I broke my rule about not sleeping with someone until I got to know them." I turned to look at Hector. "What if it wasn't?"

His eyes narrowed, and I could see the wheels turning. "You think he lied?"

I shrugged. "I'm not sure. I know that between our first…encounter and the second time I went to his apartment, he'd moved across town to an upscale flat."

Hector frowned. "A flat what?"

The corner of my mouth lifted in a smile. "I forgot. You're not up on the lingo. It's an apartment."

Hector scowled. "Why not just say apartment?"

I laughed for several seconds and then gave a sigh. "Thanks, mate. I needed that laugh."

His hand went to the back of my neck and started massaging it. "So he moved. What else is bothering you?"

"When I was waking up, I heard an argument. I didn't think much about it at the time, but thinking back on it now, I know that voice. I just can't place it yet."

Hector's eyes widened in surprise.

He was right. I had a photographic memory, and it was unheard of for me not to be able to recall information when I wanted to.

His thumb hit an exceptionally tense spot, and I groaned as he pressed into it to ease the knot. "Relax. It will come to you."

Just like that, I had it. I stiffened, and his hands stopped moving. "What?"

I looked at him. "I know where I've heard that voice. I need to talk to Stephanie."

Hector nodded. "All right. We go talk to Steph."

We headed to the fifth floor, but Stephanie wasn't at her desk. I looked around and was about to ask one of the others if they'd seen her when Hector placed a hand on my arm. I turned to look at him, and he tilted his head in the direction of the comm room. When we crossed the room to the doorway leading into the room, Hector rapped on the door and asked, "Anyone know where Stephanie is?"

It was Ram who answered without taking his gaze off the monitors. "She and Tina went to Atlantic City with their shadows."

 **Alex's POV**

Sitting back with a sigh, I turned off the dictation machine and rested my forearms against my forehead. It was a long day, but I was officially done working for a whole week. I was leaving for New York in the morning, and I was equal parts nervous and excited. I was looking forward to my time with Cam. We were at the point in our relationship that I wanted more of a physical one. Although Cam was a perfect gentleman when we'd gone out, I could sense he was feeling the same way.

The lights going off in the hallway told me that it was later than I'd thought, and I gathered my things so that I could hurry up and leave. The minute I stepped into the hallway, I shuddered. Nervously looking around, I picked up my pace as I headed for the exit.

When I walked out of the building, the unease I was feeling increased when I saw that the light in the parking lot was out. It wasn't totally dark in the lot, but there was no moon or stars either, so it was darker than I'd have liked. I straightened a bit, trying to give off a confidence I was far from feeling as I made my way across the lot to my car.

The door was unlocked, and I was ready to climb in when the world went dark.

 **Cam's POV**

Whistling as I made my way into the hotel, I walked up to the reception desk and asked, "Dr. Alex Marshall's room, please."

The receptionist frowned as she looked at the ledger in front of her. After several seconds she looked back up at me and said, "I'm sorry, sir, but she never signed in."

My eyes narrowed, and my tone was a bit sharper than I intended. "What do you mean she hasn't checked in? She had a conference here this week."

The woman behind the counter nodded. "I know, sir. They were very surprised that she never showed and didn't bother to contact anyone."

I nodded to the woman and turned to make my way back out to my car. I wasn't sure what I was going to do next, but one thing was for sure, I knew I intended to find Alex and find out what the hell was going on.

As I walked to my car, I pulled out my cell phone and made a call. I didn't realize just how out of sorts I was until I heard the voice on the other end and felt myself relaxing. If anyone could find Alex, she was the one.

"Hello?"

"Steph… Alex never made it to the conference."

I could hear the sharpness in her tone as she said, "I'm on it. Are you going to stay there, or are you headed back to Trenton?"

I closed my eyes and stood there as if I were waiting for divine intervention to tell me what the best path was. Finally, I shook myself out of the stupor I was in and said, "I'm on my way back now. I need that information ASAP."

"I'll call in the cavalry."

There was a hesitation in her response, and I demanded, "What?"

She sighed. "Tina and I are in Atlantic City. Since Bear is in custody, she wanted another one of those smoothies, so the two of us made the trip down."

I closed my eyes and swore. "I have a bad feeling about this, Steph. Get the two of you out of there and back to RangeMan."

There was something in her voice I couldn't place as she said, "Oh, _shit_!"

I looked down at my cell phone and swore as I got a dial tone. My jaw clenched, and I disconnected and then called RangeMan.

Binkie came on the line, saying, "RangeMan Security, how may I direct your call?"

"Binkie, this is Shep. I need Ranger on the line ASAP. Steph and Tina might be in danger."

The next instant, Ranger's voice was barking out at me with urgency as he said, "Report!"

"Long story short, Steph and Tina are in Atlantic City on the boardwalk and might be in danger. Steph swore and the line went dead."

"We're on it. Anything else?"

I let out a frustrated sigh. "Alex is missing. She never checked into the hotel for the conference."

"I'll have Manny go and check her apartment and the clinic."

"Thanks. I'm on my way back now."

 **Thor's POV**

My hands clenched as I stood in the doorway watching her sleep. It was getting harder and harder to keep space between us when all I wanted to do was take her in my arms and take this, whatever it was, to its natural conclusion. Of course, if that happened, I could just picture the hurt I'd be in when Stephanie got through with me.

I didn't like most women. Stephanie was the first woman to breech my defenses other than my sister and niece. And now there was Rina.

My hand rubbed over my chest. Suddenly, I raised my head and sniffed the air, my gaze narrowing. I went into warrior mode as I slid from the house and went hunting. They wanted to come after me and what was mine to protect? A feral smile graced my lips. _Come ahead, assholes. Today's just as good a day for you to die as any._


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

 **Stephanie's POV**

Knowing that Bear was in custody and that she was free, Tina conned me into driving her to Atlantic City so that she could get another smoothie. I cleared it with Ranger and Lester, and although they wanted us to be careful, both of them agreed we could go. Of course, that also meant that our shadows went with us, but we were okay with that.

I pulled into the parking lot and found a space as close to the boardwalk as possible. Tina was still struggling to get out of the SUV when I rounded the front of the vehicle, so I held the door steady so she could use it to help her get down.

Before we headed out, I made sure that we had everything and locked the vehicle, and then we made our way to where we'd gotten the smoothies the last time we were here. Five minutes was all it took us to find the kiosk, and we both ordered smoothies. Tina had raved about the last one she'd had the whole trip, and the excitement in her eyes as she waited for her treat was fun to watch.

The vendor set the smoothies on the counter and said, "That will be eleven fifty each."

My eyes widened as Tina went off on the hapless man. "Like bloody hell it is. The last time we got them they were only three fifty."

He winked at her and, with a serious expression, replied, "Yeah, but you two are cute, so it's more expensive."

Just then, Zip stepped forward and said, "I think you might want to rethink how much you are charging the ladies. After all, you wouldn't want your boss to suddenly feel that he'd be better off selling out and putting all of his workers out of a job."

The guy behind the counter sneered. "Well, now. I think I'm going to triple the costs now since you've threatened me."

Zip chuckled. "Man, it's no threat. I mean every word."

"Well, lucky for me my boss is sitting on his fat ass in his air-conditioned office and I'm here making a tidy little profit."

A gravelly voice from behind us spoke up to say, "Not for long, you're not. You're fired! Get your gear and get out."

The look of alarm on the young man's face was priceless. His gaze darted around, and then he sneered once more and knocked over the smoothies on the counter.

Tina moaned, and the man behind us chuckled. "Don't you worry none, little lady. I'll have two fresh smoothies in just a minute. And they're on the house, by the way."

Zip faded back into the background as we took our smoothies and started walking along and looking at the various shops.

My phone chirped, and I paused to answer it, thinking that Tina would automatically wait for me. I frowned when I saw that it was Cam calling, and when he said that Alex never made it to her conference and we should return to RangeMan, my stomach felt like it was on a roller coaster and it was freefalling to the ground. I looked around to where I thought Tina was standing, and no one was there.

I scanned the area to see if I could pick up where she'd gone. There was no sign of her. It was as if she'd vanished. Something on the ground caught my eye, and then my anxiety level increased tenfold when I saw that her smoothie was on the ground. Without even realizing the call was still connected, I said, "Oh, _shit_!"

Pushing the phone back into my bag, I switched to looking for Zip. I relaxed a little when I saw him at the corner of a building a short distance away, and I started walking in that direction.

When I reached him, he shook his head and said, "I know what you're going to ask, and all I can say is she suddenly turned pale as a ghost and bolted. Steve is following her while I stayed here so I could keep an eye on you."

"Do you know which way they went?"

He motioned down the alley between the two buildings he was standing in front of. "They went this way and turned the corner at the end to the right."

I nodded. "All right. Let's go see if we can find them."

Zip grimaced. "I was afraid you'd say that. I also know that Ranger would prefer it if I kept you here until they join us."

My eyes narrowed. "You know that I've stunned Hector and Lester. Do you think I'd hesitate to stun you?"

He groaned. "I know damn well that you'd stun me. If you get yourself hurt, I'm not going to be a happy camper."

I placed my hand on my weapon and headed out in the direction Zip had said that Tina had taken.

 **Alex's POV**

It was cold. I was climbing a snow-laden mountain with the wind stripping the heat from me as soon as it would radiate out to my skin. I clutched at my arms. They were bare! Where was my coat? I wanted to sit down, lie down, but I knew that was the most dangerous thing I could do. Suddenly, I was doing it anyway. But the snow felt wrong under my body. It was smooth…hard…and dry, not at all like snow. In an instant, my hip and cheek were aching as if I'd been lying here for hours. I couldn't hear the wind anymore. I was still cold, but now I knew that I was inside. In a room? I opened my eyes, realizing that I'd been dreaming again. Instead of the unending expanse of the world around me, I could see only a few feet to the dirty white wall. I was still in the room I'd woken up in previously, on the floor. My chest contracted, but I lacked even the strength to curl up in a ball and cry. Maybe later, I'd try the door handle again…or maybe not. For now, I closed my eyes and let sleep take me away from the reality of this locked cell of a room that I'd found myself in.

I must have slept, because I was feeling marginally better, as if my energy had been partially restored. I was in that in between state of dreaming and wakefulness and found myself wondering how long I'd been here. The last thing that I remembered was getting off work. It had been dark, darker than usual due to the fact that there was no moon in the sky when I made my way to my car. I couldn't help thinking of the horror movies that I loved watching, where the next victim of the killer found themselves in just such a situation. I'd woken up twice since I'd been put in his room, but I'd quickly passed out or fallen asleep both times.

I remembered that feeling…as if someone was watching every move I made. I'd heard a sound and turned. There was a huge object close, and I remembered putting up my forearm to ward them off as I'd opened my mouth to scream. Suddenly, something white descended on my head and I felt myself disappearing as everything went dark. I closed my eyes, wanting to be away from the reality of my situation, even if it was just in a dream.

The loud clanging of the metal door slamming shut woke me, and I struggled to sit up. I had to blink my eyes several times, and it took a lot of effort to open them. When I did, it was all I could do not to scream as I got a good look at the man standing just inside the room.

We'd all heard the stories about this man. No one was willing to work with him. Not since the incident with the three student nurses who claimed the man was a psychopathic monster. Oh, no one could prove it, and the one person who tried ended up floating face down in the Delaware. But we all knew it was true. Dr. Ripley was pure evil, and we all knew it. I made it a point never to go near the man, so what was I doing here locked in a room that he had access to?

He smiled that creepy sicko smile of his and laughed. It was a high-pitched laugh that gave away the fact that he was crazy. I felt the hair stand up on my arms and the back of my neck at just the sight of him.

"Hello, dear Alex. I'll bet you weren't expecting to see me here."

I bit my lip so I wouldn't say anything, but he didn't seem to need an answer as he said, "I am in need of your special skills."

Frowning, I wasn't sure what special skills he was referring to, since the only skills I considered of value were my nursing skills. I was a midwife specializing in traumatic births. Most of my clients were women in their fifties, and I'd even had patients in their sixties.

Dr. Ripley nodded. "I see you've put two and two together. Yes, I need your midwife skills. If you do a good job, I'll let you live."

He motioned with his hand, and two beefy guys rushed into the room and grabbed me. They forced me to stand and walk with them to another room, where a woman was strapped to a table. When I saw who it was, I froze. I knew this woman. Her photo had been all over the news about eight months ago when she disappeared from a mental institution. What was she doing here? From the looks of her, she was pregnant…nearly full term.

She glared at the doctor. "You won't get away with this."

The doctor smiled. "Oh, dear Helen, I already have." He let loose with a laugh that gave me the impression he'd gone off the deep end. Then his eyes turned to me. "I want my child out of her…now, please. You will make it happen, or I will make sure you suffer the same fate as my pet here when she has served her purpose."

It was then I got a look in his eyes and knew that he meant every word. I had one chance at surviving this ordeal, and that was to take the baby from the woman lying on the table. I swallowed hard as I asked, "Wouldn't it be safer for the baby if you waited till it was ready to be born?"

Ripley looked at Helen, his eyes gleaming as he said, "This bitch took my baby girl from me, it's only fitting that she gives me a replacement on my little Jeanne's birthday. She would have been thirty-one today." He turned to me and said, "Take my child from her womb, now!"

I turned to the woman on the table. There was a look of horror on her face as she whispered, "That's why you did this to me, you monster?"

Ripley sneered. "Why, dear Helen, I'm not the one who tried to murder my own child. I would never do that. My children mean the world to me. All three of them. And with this baby I will have a fourth child."

Ripley turned and walked to the door, where he stopped long enough to say, "You have three hours. Cut my child out of her if you have to. Just get it done."

With that, he walked through the door, and then all I heard was the sound of the door being locked.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

 **Tina's POV**

Stephanie turned to take a call, and trying to give her some privacy, I turned to take in the sights of the boardwalk. The smoothie was just as good as the last one I'd had, and the babies were practically doing dances in my belly they were so excited. Something out of the corner of my eye caught my attention, and I froze. In slow motion I turned, the happy feeling changing to dread as I knew what I was going to see, but it was like watching a train wreck. No matter how much you told yourself you didn't want to see, you couldn't help but watch.

The sight of the clown walking toward me had me in full panic mode. The cup in my hand dropped, and I was frozen in place for a couple of heartbeats, and then suddenly I was able to move and I was booking it the hell out of there.

I had no idea where I was going. It just needed to be away from that clown.

When I was four, my parents took me to a circus, and while we walked around at the concession stands in the area, a mean-looking clown came by and snatched me up and then took off with me. If it hadn't been for Cam giving a shout and taking chase, the clown probably would have succeeded in kidnapping me.

Looking back to see if I'd gotten away, I saw that the clown was following me and there was an intense look on his face, as if I was the one he was following. My heart started racing, and I redoubled my efforts to get out of there.

All of a sudden, a hand took hold of my arm, and I felt myself being pulled to the side. A high-pitched giggling had chills racing down my spine. I remembered that giggle, but it couldn't be… He was dead.

I turned and opened my mouth to scream, but in that instant a hand covered my mouth and the scream was muffled to the point that I doubted anyone could hear it.

 **Stephanie's POV**

Zip and I followed in the direction Tina had taken, but there was no sign of her. All of a sudden, I saw a body on the ground, and we slowed as we moved toward it. By now my gun was in my hand, and I could see that Zip was armed as well.

When we reached the body, he knelt down to check the vitals and swore. He looked up at me and said, "It's Steve. He's alive, but he's out cold. Looks like someone hit him from behind."

Scanning the area, I pulled my phone from my bag with my left hand as I covered Zip with the gun in my right. There was no hesitation as I hit the panic button. We needed help, and we needed it now.

The sound of running feet nearing our location had Zip and me taking up a stance so that we could defend ourselves if necessary, but the sight of Ranger and Lester racing into the alley had us relaxing just a bit.

There was a slight easing of tension on Ranger's face, but Lester's look turned fierce as he demanded, "Where's Tina?"

"I'm sorry, Les. I turned to take Cam's call, and when I turned back she was gone."

His jaw clenched, but other than that he showed no reaction. He seemed to be holding himself firmly in check, as if he'd fly apart into a million pieces at any moment.

Zip spoke up to say, "She took off, and Steve followed her while I stayed with Steph."

Lester looked at me, and the pleading look in his eyes told me he had a million questions but he was afraid to voice them.

Holstering my gun, I moved over next to him and placed my hand on his arm. "Zip said that she seemed to be running away from a clown."

He paled even more, and his voice was a hoarse whisper as he said, "She's afraid of clowns. One grabbed her at a circus once."

My eyes widened. "I never knew that about her."

He nodded. His voice was barely a whisper as he said, "We were watching a movie, and there was a clown in it. She freaked, and when I finally got her calmed down, she told me about what had happened."

Tank lifted a bag as he said, "We found this over there." He pointed to a dark corner near where we were standing.

The guys went into action looking for clues, and I was about to join them when my phone rang. I retrieved it from my bag and connected the call. "Hello?"

"Steph, this is Kye. I know where they have her."

"Who?"

There was a pause before he asked, "What do you mean, who? Cam said he called you to tell you about Alex."

"Yeah, he told me, but Tina has just disappeared."

He swore and then gave me an address. "We're on our way. The place is closer to where you are. Maybe by some miracle that's where they took Tina too."

Just before he disconnected the call, I heard Cam's raised voice demanding to know what was going on.

 **Kye's POV**

I couldn't believe what I was holding in my hands. What were the chances that the person I was looking for was someone I actually knew? When I called to explain the situation, I was told they were on their way and to pick them up at the airport.

Hector and I'd left straight away, and now we were on the way back to Trenton. It was a silent ride for the most part, but as we were nearing the outskirts of town, my name was called.

I turned as our passenger asked, "How do you want me to play this?"

Shaking my head, I said, "We'll leave that up to you. We just need to know why he's doing this."

I got a nod for a reply.

Three minutes later, Hector pulled into the RangeMan garage, and the three of us got out. We led the way to the holding cells where Bear was located.

Our guest stopped at the first glimpse of Bear through the two-way mirror.

I watched as he took a deep breath and then moved toward the door with purpose.

The look on Bear's face when he saw the newcomer said a lot. For a fraction of a second, I almost felt sorry for Bear until I remembered how he'd played me.

Bear scowled as his gaze went to the mirror. "What are you doing here? I thought you never wanted to set eyes on me again?"

"You cheated on me. How did you expect me to feel?"

There was a softening on Bear's face. "I didn't. It was all an illusion."

"I know that now. At the time I was crushed. I loved you more than I've ever loved anyone, and you did that to me…why? What was so important that you had to throw away what we had?"

Bear ran a hand through his hair. The frustration he was feeling was written all over his face. "I didn't have a bloody choice! It was either get them the one they wanted, or they'd destroy someone I loved."

"Right! And you expect me to believe that?"

Bear stood with leashed violence. "My own brother set me up to be raped because I told them I wouldn't do what they wanted! It was a lesson in doing what you're told…or so I was informed."

I could see the softening in our guest's face as he looked at Bear. "You were raped?"

Bear turned away and once again ran his hand through his hair. His voice was gruff as he said, "Raped, beaten, and left for dead."

Jason took a step closer. "God, I'm sorry." He looked down at the ground for several seconds before he asked, "Why didn't you tell me? Maybe I could have figured a way out."

Bear shook his head. "Father wanted Agents A and J. There was no reasoning with him. J had found a couple of his followers and got the evidence to put them away. Father was furious and wanted to make an example of them."

Jason's eyes widened, and then he frowned. "So why were you trying to grab the other woman?"

Bear turned so he was facing Jason. "Because I convinced him it would hurt J more if he went after Tina instead."

Now it was Jason's turn to look furious, and he moved forward so he had Bear by the throat. "What the hell did you do to Tina, you bastard?"

Bear shook him off. "Nothing! Someone got to me before I could grab her."

Jason seemed to calm down a bit.

Bear glared. "Why do you care?"

"Because she's my friend. She helped me pull myself out of the funk that I was in after we broke up."

Bear stilled. He started shaking his head and dropped into a chair. "Damn! It was going to be so simple. I could use her, and then I wouldn't have to hurt Kye."

Jason turned back to face Bear. "You sound like you care."

Bear laughed harshly. "I did…do. Oh, he's not the love of my life, but I did come to care for him. As a matter of fact, I was going to tell him everything after what happened, but Critter showed me a video of him making a pass at Kye. He said if I didn't go away and keep quiet, he'd make sure the same thing happened to Kye. I couldn't let that happen."

"Looks like you're in a royal mess."

"Tell me about it. Father is a vicious man. He has ways of making you do things you never thought you were capable of."

Jason looked at Bear. "So tell me where he is so that we can take him out."

Bear looked at him and shook his head. "I can't let you be hurt. If keeping quiet will ensure that, then that's what I'll do."

Jason shook his head. "He's lying to you. Once he's killed Tina, he has every intention of going after A and J…and me. He has to. The only way he can keep control of you is to make sure that we're all dead."

Bear looked at Jason with such longing that I actually hurt for him. He took a deep breath and then let out a sigh. "I'll tell you…on one condition. I want to go with you."

Hector moved toward the door and into the room where Bear and Jason were. He came to a stop when he reached Bear and they were standing toe-to-toe. "You come. You mess up, I kill you."

Bear nodded and then rattled off an address.

I called Stephanie because it was closer to where she was. When she told me Tina was missing, a knot formed in my gut, and I just prayed that we'd get there in time.

 **Rina's POV**

I paced back and forth in my bedroom, wondering how much longer I was going to be forced to stay here with Simon LeGree. One minute he was decent, and the next, for no reason, he'd be cold as ice and all his venom was directed my way. The latest incident occurred when I got out of the pool.

 _I'd just wrapped the towel around myself when Thor came stalking out of the house asking what the hell I thought I was doing._

 _I turned to him and said, "Taking a swim. Like I've done every day at this time without any issues, so what the hell is your problem now?"_

 _He continued forward until our bodies were flush and his voice was a low growly menace as he said, "That was before we started having intruders trying to get into the house. I told you we needed to keep a low profile in case they were watching. I don't see this as staying out of sight, princess!"_

 _I rolled my eyes and went to brush by him, but he took hold of my arm and refused to allow me passage. I brought my knee up, but before it could connect, Thor had me over his shoulder and was storming back into the house. I squirmed, and he had the audacity to swat my bottom._

 _Although it stung, I knew he'd pulled the force of the swat or I would have been in a lot more discomfort. Still, I was pissed and didn't plan to be forgiving._

 _When he set me down in my room I was ready but the big oaf countered my movements, and the next thing I knew I was locked in my room. I let loose with a frustrated scream. There was a chuckle from the other side as he said, "I'll be back once you've had a chance to calm down."_

That had been three hours ago.

I turned to walk back over to the bed, and the sound of a gun going off had me looking around for a weapon. Before I could do anything though, the door was forced open and three men rushed in. I tried to fight them off and managed to knee one of them before I felt the sting of a needle in my arm and the world went dark.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

 **Tina's POV**

The sound of a door slamming had my eyes opening, and I looked around to find myself in some sort of chamber. It was like a dungeon in one of the old castles I visited when I was little. My hands went instinctively to my abdomen, and I let out a sigh of relief when I felt the movement from the babies. Keeping my voice low, I whispered, "Don't worry, munchkins. I'm going to get us out of this."

I stood and moved over toward the door. The knob twisted, but it must have been locked on the outside because I couldn't get it to open. I leaned my head against the door, and a muffled sob came out. After what I'd been through with Harper, I wasn't sure how much more of this kind of crap I could take. A thought occurred to me, and I looked around for my purse, but it was nowhere in sight. Straightening, I lifted my chin and softly said, "This ain't over yet, jackasses."

There was nothing visible for me to use on the door, so I walked over to the cabinet and opened all the doors and drawers. Nothing sharp anywhere. Whoever cleaned out this room thought of everything. I was just about to give up when I found a wire on the underside of one of the drawers. It took some finagling, but I managed to get it loose.

From everything that Cam had taught me, this was my weakest area. I swore to myself when I got out of this, I was going to learn how to open any lock ever made. It didn't help that the panic I was feeling from being locked in this tiny room was mounting.

Footsteps sounded outside the door, and the panic kicked up a notch. I hadn't seen any type of weapon when I'd been going through the drawers, and from the sound of it, whoever was on the other side was coming my way. I backed away from the door and found a spot that was hidden from view. I squeezed in and held myself still.

The sound of a lock being undone reached me, and then the door creaked open.

My hand went over my mouth so that I wouldn't make any noise. When the person stepped inside, my eyes widened in shock as I wondered what she was doing here.

 **Alex's POV**

I didn't want to take the baby, but as things sometimes happen, Helen went into labor and I had no choice but to deliver the infant. Things moved so fast, and then the baby was there. I did what I could for Helen and then checked over the baby. He was a perfect little boy. As I wrapped him in one of the blankets, I frowned, wondering what Dr. Ripley would say when he found out that the baby was a boy and not a girl.

The door swung open, and I moved over to see what was going on. The hallway was empty, so I ventured out. I knew this might be a trap, but it seemed to be my best chance. Even if I couldn't get free, maybe I could hide from them until help came. I was worried what Cam would think and if he even knew that I had been kidnapped.

Forcing those thoughts from my mind, I concentrated on what I was doing as I moved along the corridor.

Scratching noises were coming from up ahead, and my footsteps faltered just a bit. Then I wondered if there were more people trapped here. Did Dr. Ripley routinely kidnap people and force them to live in this horrible place?

Maneuvering the baby into the crook of my left arm, I used my right to unlock the door and push it open. Although I couldn't see anyone inside, I stepped inside anyway, and my eyes widened as I took in the look of panic on Tina's face.

"What are you doing here?"

Her eyes darted toward the door, and she shook her head. "We don't have time for questions. We have to get out of here."

Seeing her point, I nodded. "Let's go."

I moved back to the doorway and peeked out. Seeing no one, I stepped into the hallway and we headed out. Whether we were going in the right direction or walking right into a trap, there was no way to tell. All I knew was that this was as far away from Helen's room as I could get, and right now, that's where I wanted to be.

What seemed like hours was merely several minutes when we came to the end of the hallway. There was nowhere to go. The sound of footsteps coming in our direction had both of us redoubling our efforts to find a way out.

A high-pitched laugh from behind us had the blood freezing in my veins—at least, that's what it felt like. Hands took hold of each of my arms, and a harsh, "Don't hurt the child!" had the grips easing up.

Dr. Ripley took hold of Tina by the throat and pushed her against the wall so she was facing him. The smile on his face was the thing of nightmares. "You have a lot to answer for. Because of you, two of my children are dead. I'm going to finish the job they started."

His gaze lowered to Tina's abdomen, and his eyes took on a gleam. His hand came up, and there was a scalpel in it. There was a grin on his face as he said, "But perhaps I'll just cut your children out of you to show you what it's like to lose a child, and then I'll keep you around so that you can carry my seeds and give me more children."

The high-pitched giggle was there again, and I wanted to throw up, but I forced myself to swallow down the bile. I was shaking, and from what I could see, Tina was in bad shape herself.

Ripley started making an incision on her abdomen when a younger man I'd never seen before stepped into the light. There was a fierce look on his face as he lifted his head. "You promised I could have this one."

Tina's eyes widened, and she seemed to be in some sort of distress.

The young man grinned. "Bet you didn't think you'd see me again, did you?"

Tina's voice was barely a whisper as she said, "You're dead."

He sneered. "You'll wish I was the one you killed when we get through with you. I have all kinds of plans to pay you back for killing my twin brother."

There was a crash and gunshots could be heard, and the next thing I knew, all hell had broken loose.

 **Stephanie's POV**

It didn't take us long to reach the address, and when we arrived, Dad and Rodriguez were there as well as Thor and Joe. By the time we'd gotten out of the vehicles and joined them, Kye and Hector joined us as well, and when I saw who they had with them, I glared. "What's _he_ doing here?"

Jason stepped up beside Bear. "He's going to help us find Tina."

I wanted to tell them there was no way in hell I'd trust him and we didn't need his help…but I knew we did. This place was huge, and we had no idea of where to even begin.

I looked him in the eye, and something about the look on his face when he looked at Jason had me softening. Turning to Ranger, I nodded. "Let's go."

Ranger let his gaze land on Bear for a split second, and then he turned to Hector.

Hector nodded.

Although no words were spoken, I had a feeling that if Bear stepped out of line, he wouldn't live to enjoy double-crossing us.

Bear pulled out a blueprint and showed us the layout of the house and where we needed to go. There were three sections that would need to be taken out simultaneously. As he pointed to an area on one of the lower floors, he said, "This is where he's keeping the woman he snuck out of the mental hospital."

At that, Dad looked at him sharply and asked, "Do you know who she is?"

Bear shook his head. "No. Only that she's carrying Father's baby."

Dad looked at Joe, and I could see the wheels turning in their heads, but neither one of them voiced it.

If it was her, I just hoped I wouldn't have to see her.

Bear pointed out another area on the other side of the house from the first one. "Here is where most of the followers stay. I'm guessing that's where the young woman is. From the picture I saw, she looks enough like Jeanne Ellen that Father might have it in his head that's who she is."

Thor's eyes narrowed. When he turned to where Ranger and I were standing, he said, "I have that covered. If you could spare Cal and Hal, they can help with keeping the rest of the followers from trying to interfere."

Ranger nodded, and the two fell in line beside Thor.

According to the schematic, it looked like we were going to have the hardest job. Bear pointed toward the lowest level and said, "That's where we're heading. There are guards everywhere."

Once again, Ranger nodded. "All right. I'll take the lead, and Tank, I want you bringing up the rear with Stephanie in the middle."

I started shaking my head, but before I could say anything, Jason stepped forward and said, "I think you should let Bear and me take the lead." He raised his hand as if he knew there would be an argument. "They won't expect me to be with Bear, and we can take them by surprise. I know that you have no reason to trust him…but I think he was as much a victim as anyone else."

Ranger looked to me, and I gave a nod. My gaze went to Bear, and my tone was soft as I said, "The Bear that I remember would do anything to protect those he loved. I'd like to think I wasn't wrong in thinking that he loved Kye, even if it wasn't to the degree that I once thought."

Ranger turned to Bear. "If you help us, I will do everything in my power to help you. I don't think I need to add that if you double-cross us, you won't live through the day."

Bear nodded. "I kind of figured that out already." He turned to Jason. "I'd rather you not take point with me. I'd feel better if you'd stick close to Agent J."

Jason shook his head. "We'll do this together."

Bear reluctantly nodded, and we headed out.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

 **Thor's POV**

It didn't take us long to get into position. I'd worked enough missions with Ranger that I knew how he was going to play this. Glancing down, I checked my watch to see how much time there was left before I could get in there and let out the rage that was boiling inside me. Three minutes and counting. My eyes narrowed as my thoughts went back to the moment those bastards had dared to enter my home and take her from me.

 _After my altercation with Rina, I'd decided to give her time to chill out before going back and seeing if she wanted to take advantage of my home theater system. I knew there was a new action drama out that she'd been talking about wanting to see, and I had arranged to get a copy so that we could watch it._

 _I'd just entered the den when the sound of breaking glass had me spinning toward the kitchen. There were five of them, and my actions were automatic. Within seconds, I had a knife in one hand and my Glock in the other. It took me fifteen precious minutes to dispose of them, and then I'd gone to check on Rina, only to find her bedroom door had been trashed and she was nowhere in sight._

 _My hand balled into a fist, and I struck the wall, leaving a hole before I was on the move toward the garage. Just as I went through the door, a shot rang out, and I had to dive so that I'd avoid getting hit. In the instant before I was under cover, I saw the dead man walking. I tried to get to them in time, but by the time I'd managed to follow them, they were burning rubber._

I'd lost no time in calling Ranger and letting him know the bastards had gotten Rina. That's when he'd told me that he was on his way to Atlantic City because something was going down with Stephanie and Tina. I'd told him to keep me in the loop and I was heading in his direction.

It was as I was nearing the city limits that I'd gotten the call telling me they thought they had the location of where the midwife was and they were hoping the others would be there as well. I'd told Ranger I was on my way.

My thoughts were interrupted as Hal moved up beside me, and I turned to look at him.

He nodded. "We've got the green light."

I nodded and then grinned as I let the monster inside me come out to play. My voice was a low growl as I said, "Then let's go and play." My gaze sharpened on them as I said, "The one with the scarred lip is mine. He took something that was mine to protect, and I want to be the one to show him just how bad a mistake he made when he took her from me."

They both nodded, and with that, we moved out.

Our gas masks were in place as Cal lobbed the tear gas into the room. If there were any innocents in the room, they'd be incredibly uncomfortable for several minutes, but it was safer in the long run going this route so that we could make sure we took out all the players before they could act. I had an extra mask in my hand and intended getting it to Rina as soon as I possibly could.

As we hit the room, I heard the distant sound of gunfire. I turned to my two companions and said, "Let's get this tied up before they have all the fun."

Cal and Hal both grinned, and we got to work taking out the guards in the room.

Three men came at me, and with a slice of the knife, a karate slice to the back of a neck, and taking one by the throat with my hand and crushing his larynx, they were all down and wouldn't be getting up again.

I scanned the room until I found Rina, and then I was moving in her direction. In no time I had her untied and she was in my arms with the gas mask over her face as I quickly moved us out of the room so I could get her some fresh air to help get rid of the effects of the tear gas.

Hal raised a hand on our way out, so I knew he and Cal would take care of the men we'd taken out.

 **Frank's POV**

We moved into position, and as I waited for the moment we would strike, thoughts of all the things that I wanted to do with the woman I suspected we might find inside raced through my mind. The only thing that didn't fit would be her carrying his child. After all, Helen was fifty-five years old, and although that wasn't that old in the normal scope of things, for having a baby it would be.

Joe shook his head and said, "I can't wrap my head around her having a baby. Maybe it's someone else."

I gave a single nod. "Maybe. But just in case, you better take the lead so that I don't kill the bitch. Not that she doesn't deserve it, but I want her back under lock and key."

Joe sighed. "And here I was hoping you'd do the deed and I could testify that it was self-defense."

Lifting a shoulder in a shrug, I said, "That works too."

Rodriguez chuckled. "I'd like it better if I got to kill her and the two of you could swear it was self-defense."

The green light on my watch lit up, and we moved out.

Rodriguez hit the door, and Joe took out the first guard while I took out the second, and then Rodriguez led the way down the hallway and we cleared the section of the house systematically until we came to a locked room.

We were on the other side of the house from where Ranger and his team went in, and the sound of gunshots coming from that direction filtered through. We looked at each other and stepped up the pace.

Joe unlocked the door, and as soon as it was opened, I knew I'd been right in thinking that the woman being held in this area was Helen. She was strapped to a hospital bed that they used for pregnant woman, and from the look on her face, she was furious about the position she was in.

I smiled as I sauntered closer to her. "Well, well. Look what we have here."

She glared at me. "Help me out of this before he comes back."

I scratched my head. "Come to think of it, I kind of like you where you are."

"Damn it, Frank! Get me out of here. I don't want any more of his filthy spawn inside of me."

I raised an eyebrow. "You had another child? Why, Helen, I thought you didn't want any more children."

She snarled, "I don't! But he didn't give me a choice in the matter. I've been strapped to this bed ever since I killed your filthy whore of a daughter."

I frowned. "What are you talking about?"

Rage twisted her face. " _Stephanie_! I killed her before he forced himself on me and made me pregnant."

I looked at the other two men with me, and we all smiled before I turned back to her. "Stephanie is alive and well. As a matter of fact, she's back in Trenton. Of course, I did hear that you'd murdered another patient at the hospital. A Jeanne Ellen Burrows. I've heard that her father was a doctor at the hospital where you were staying."

Her eyes widened, and I could see the wheels turning in her mind. Suddenly, a look of horror crossed her face and she whispered, "He's mad. You have to help me, Frank. For the children's sake."

Rodriguez stepped forward and sneered in her face. "Like you helped Stephanie? Hell, Frank. I think we should let Ripley have his little pet. He can keep impregnating her and have all the children he wants."

Helen shuddered, and a part of me was enjoying her fear.

I'd never thought myself a cruel person, but at the moment, thinking of all the things she'd done to my baby made me the cruelest person imaginable as I actually thought about doing exactly what Rodriguez suggested. Several seconds passed before I said, "That would mean that we'd have to let Ripley live…and I have no intention of doing that. After all, that bastard was responsible for having my little Rina kidnapped."

Helen's eyes narrowed. "Rina?"

I nodded. "After our divorce was final, I married Angie Morelli. We had a baby girl who's now in her senior year of college."

Her face contorted. "That damn Angie Morelli! I'm glad she married that bastard. She deserved the beatings that he gave her. She's nothing but a whore…just like that filthy brat of yours."

Joe's hands clenched, and from the look on his face, I wouldn't put it past him not to squeeze the life out of Helen.

I lifted a hand to stay him and said, "Angie Morelli is a million times more of a lady than you could ever be. You're well out of our lives, Helen. I'm not going to leave you to Ripley, but neither will we lift a finger to help you. As far as I'm concerned, you can stay right where you are for the rest of your life." I turned to the other two. "Is there any way out of here?"

Joe and Rodriguez looked around the room trying various things to see if they could find a way out. After several minutes, they returned to where I was standing.

Joe shook his head. "There's no way out other than the door where we came in."

I nodded. "Good. Then I suggest we lock this room down and go help the others."

They nodded, and we turned to go.

I could hear Helen struggling to move behind me and then her hoarse cry as she said, "No! You can't do that to me. That's not human."

I turned to look at her over my shoulder. "Like when you left Stephanie locked in that mausoleum when she was four years old? You're right. It's not human. Lucky for me that the Army taught me a whole lot of things a person can do to another that aren't human. You made your bed, Helen." I smiled. "Now you get to lie in it."

The three of us left the room, and I made sure it was securely locked. I motioned to one of the men to stand guard—because I didn't want someone coming along and rescuing her—and then we headed in the direction where Ranger and his team would be.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

 **Bear's POV**

There was a reason I wanted to go first, even though I didn't mention it to the others. I knew what kind of mood Father was going to be in when we showed up, and I wanted to make sure that the three people I loved in this world were safe from harm.

I remembered the first time I'd met Father. I'd been nearly thirteen years old, and my whole world had been turned upside down. My mom was a wonderful woman, warm and loving. She'd told me that I was a wonderful person and how proud she was of me. I'd grown up wanting to be a policeman like my grandfather and uncles. I could hear the pride and the love in her voice as she'd told me stories about their lives.

I'd asked a few times about my father, and all she had told me was that he wasn't a nice man and as soon as she found that out, she'd left him. Then she'd turned to me and told me that I was good and nothing like him. I'd known no different, and I'd believed her.

On the day Father had come to pick me up, he'd used the drive to his home to explain what a vicious person my mother was in stealing me away from him. I had been informed that I was never to speak of her, and from that point on, I was to abide by all of his rules.

He'd looked at me with a half-crazed look and said, _"You will fit in quite nicely with your brothers and sisters. Family is the most important thing to us, and you must remember that, always."_

Sounds from ahead pulled me back to the present, and I knew we were near the door. I put my hand up and turned to Jason. "You wait here. Let me go through first to throw him off."

Jason looked like he wanted to argue, but finally he nodded.

My gaze went to Kye and then to Stephanie. There was so much I wanted to tell them, but I knew my time was running out. I knew what I was going to do… It was the only way to give them the edge that they'd need. I settled for saying, "There's another door about a hundred yards back. I'll see you on the other side."

Taking a deep breath, I turned around and stepped into the area where the guards were. They nodded to me, not thinking anything odd about my being there, and I used their error against them as I shut the door to protect those that I loved from the blast as I lobbed a grenade into the group of guards.

 **Stephanie's POV**

The strangest feeling hit me as Bear stood there looking back at Jason, Kye, and me. There was something on his face that I couldn't decipher. The minute his last words were out, I knew what was in his mind, but before I could say anything or act, he'd already shut the door, locking us on this side. The explosion on the other side of the door shook the passage area where we were, but aside from a small bit of falling dust, there was no danger to us.

Kye put his hand against the door, only to hurriedly pull it back again. "There's an inferno on the other side. We can't get through that way."

Hector pointed behind us. "He told us way out."

Ranger nodded. "Tank, you take the lead. Babe, I'd like you to fall back with Kye and Hector."

I was torn. I wanted at that bastard just as much as the rest of the guys did, but I reluctantly agreed. Only because I could see by the expression on the others' faces that they wanted the same thing.

Tank found the door and used his shoulder to get it opened. He had no more than stepped out when I could hear the sound of shots being fired.

Ranger's weapon was out as he joined Tank, and the rest of us followed suit.

There was enough cover for us as we stepped out into the room that whoever was firing wouldn't be able to hit us. A flash to the left had caught my gaze, and my eyes narrowed as I took in the angle I would need. My hand rose with my weapon extended, and I fired. From the sound, I knew that I'd hit something human, and the shots being directed our way stopped.

We moved out cautiously, making sure that every door was covered and everything was clear before we moved on. From the lack of guards, I was betting that Bear had engineered it so that he would take out most of Ripley's backup to give us a better chance. Tears burned the backs of my eyes as I thought about the man who'd been a big part of my life while I'd lived in London.

The hair on the back of my neck stood on end, and I was getting a sick feeling in my stomach. I did the only thing I could and whispered Ranger's name.

He stilled, putting a hand on Tank's arm to halt him as well, and that's when we heard someone saying he was going to cut the babies out of her.

Lester went ballistic, and before anyone could stop him, he went racing ahead with a gun in each hand. The look on his face was something I hoped never to see again, and I pitied the poor bastard on the receiving end because I had no doubt that they had just signed their own death warrant. By the time Lester got done with them, there would be nothing left.

The rest of us booked it after Lester and arrived in time to see him snap someone's neck around. The crack that sounded was like a gunshot, and in the next instant, Thor was there, and he had a younger man with a scarred lip in a hold where he was crushing his windpipe.

Lester didn't rest when the man he was dealing with fell dead on the floor. He turned and faced the rest of the group.

Ranger stepped close to me and whispered, "Go take care of Tina. Let us handle this, Babe."

I nodded. I knew that nothing that I could do to them would be as bad as what Thor and Lester would come up with. I'd have my revenge on these bastards for kidnapping my friend, and I was more than happy to let it go at that.

Moving over to where Tina was slumped against the wall, I noticed the other woman beside her trying to stem the flow of blood.

"What can I do to help?"

The blonde woman turned to me and said, "You can take the baby so I have both hands free."

I frowned, debating the wisdom, when a voice I recognized called out in surprise. "Alex!"

She handed me the baby, and I instinctively wrapped my arms around him.

Alex looked at Cam over her shoulder and said, "Call for an ambulance and tell them to bring the largest neo-natal incubator they have."

Cam looked stunned for a moment, and Alex threw something at him that I couldn't see and added, " _Now_!"

I moved over beside Tina and asked, "Is there anything else I can do?"

She shook her head. "Not right now." Her gaze flicked to the baby. "You might want to give him a name, though. I think that little guy is going to have a rough life unless someone with a lot of love takes him in."

I glanced up at her. "Why do you say that?"

She looked over to where the man Lester had killed was lying and said, "Because with Dr. Ripley as his father, he has one strike against him." She glanced at me and said, "His mother wouldn't win Mother of the Year, either."

I looked down at the baby in my arms, and emotions I hadn't felt since I was little surfaced. I looked up at her and said, "I know his big brother, though, and he's an example that we can overcome genetics with enough love and the right set of circumstances."

Alex smiled and turned to where she was holding pressure on Tina's abdomen.

A moan sounded, and Tina's eyes started to flutter open. When she saw me, her chin started to quiver and she asked, "Lester?"

"He's fine. I can't say the same for the people who kidnapped you. How are you doing?"

She nodded her head for several seconds, but that seemed to be the extent of her communicating abilities at the moment. Suddenly, she grimaced and started doing the breathing they'd taught us in the Lamaze classes that I'd gone to with her.

My eyes widened, and I turned to Alex. "It's too soon, isn't it?"

Alex smiled reassuringly. "It's not unusual for a trauma like this to bring on contractions. Plus, in order to stop the bleeding, I've been pressing hard on the abdomen. I know that the babies are doing well, though, and if they've chosen today to make their appearance, we just have to make sure we have everything in order to give them the best chance that we can."

Tears streamed down Tina's cheeks. "I want Les."

Alex patted her arm. "I know you do. He'll be here as soon as he can, but for now it's just us."

Tina turned to me, and her gaze went to the baby in my arms. More tears poured down her cheeks, and she said, "I want to hate him because I know he's one of them." She shook her head. "I just can't do it. He's so helpless…and innocent."

Suddenly, her face scrunched up and she screamed with pain.

Lester was suddenly beside her and lifting her into his arms. "I got you, baby." He turned to us and said, "The ambulance is here."

Alex stood. She looked back at the baby I was holding and then at Tina, seeming to be undecided about what to do.

Once more I looked down at the baby in my arms and a plan took root. I turned back to them and said, "He'll be fine. Please, don't say anything about him. I need you to trust me on this."

Alex looked hard at me for several seconds and then nodded before she went with Tina, Lester, and Cam.

I was joined by Ranger and the others, and I noticed they were all looking at the baby in my arms.

Before anyone could say or do anything, Dad, Joe, and Rodriguez joined us.

Dad motioned to the baby I was holding. "I was right in who I thought the woman from the mental hospital was. It seems she's just given birth."

Once again I looked down at the infant in my arms. As I held him in the crook of my right arm, I caressed his tiny face with the fingers of my left hand. "Not to worry, Gabriel. You are a good and wonderful person, and you will be very much loved." I looked up at the others, taking in each of their expressions. When I reached Jason, I smiled and added, "Your godfather, Jason, can tell you all about the wonderful man your big brother was." My gaze moved to Kye, and I raised an eyebrow in question.

Kye in turn looked at Hector, and the twinkle in Hector's eyes must have given him the answer he wanted, because he grinned as he turned back to me and nodded.

I smiled down at the baby in my arms and said, "Your fathers will both love you and help you to grow up to be the kind of man everyone can be proud of."

Dad wrapped his arm around my shoulder. "Are you sure this is what you want, pumpkin?"

I looked up to meet Dad's gaze. "No one knows better than us what it's like to grow up without love and acceptance from those who are supposed to love you. I don't think there is anyone anywhere who could give Gabriel a better foundation to grow on."

He nodded. "All right."

Bobby stepped up beside me and offered to check the baby over and make sure he wasn't on the premises when the police arrived, to which we all agreed. Kye and Hector went with him.

It took another three hours to clear everything with the authorities and evacuate the premises. I was a bit surprised when Dad and Rodriguez didn't join us when we left, but I just hugged Dad and said, "I trust you can find your way home."

He just threw back his head and laughed.

 **A/N:** Tomorrow's chapter will be the last of the story.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

 **Epilogue:**

 **Stephanie's POV**

It was warm for the fourth of July, and in deference to the day and the heat, Lester and Tina had volunteered their home for the picnic that RangeMan put together to celebrate the day. The picnic had become a tradition over the past ten years—usually taking place at the park that Ranger had had built adjacent to the building for when the children were there so they'd have a place to play.

A team had been hired to come in and set up the canopy, tables, and chairs. Ella, Angie, and Grandma Mazur had spent the past couple of days getting all of the food ready, and there was quite a spread. Right now we were waiting for the finishing touches to be made so that we could eat. Tina, Lula, Rina, Celia, Alex, and I were all seated around one of the tables sharing war stories…of the motherhood variety.

We were all laughing at the story Lula had shared of Darnell knocking a ninth grader on his butt for making Sheena—his sister—cry. Sheena was a tiny nine-year-old, and Darnell was seven. Most people thought Darnell was the older of the two because he was twice the size of his sister.

Lula shook her head. "That boy came walking into the house with his head hanging down, thinking he was gonna get a whipping. Apparently the principal told him that if he was his daddy, that's what he'd do and he'd be real disappointed his son did such a thing. When we finally got outta him what happened, Tank looked his boy in the eye and told him he done hisself proud and they'd be no punishment coming his way from us." Her eyes brightened as she went on to say, "On the other hand, that principal put in for a transfer."

Tina was the first one to laugh. "What did Tank do?"

Lula's eyes widened. "Do?" She chuckled. "He went to that school when they was having a real important meeting and walked right on in." By now, she was laughing almost hysterically, which had the rest of us laughing, even though we weren't one hundred percent sure why we were laughing.

Tina hit her hand on the table and took a breath. Biting her lip to keep a straight face, she asked, "Why are we laughing?"

Lula doubled up laughing even harder. Her words were broken up between howls of laughter as she said, "That…principal…asked…Tank…what…he…thought he…was…doing…and…" A burst of laughter broke free, and it took her several seconds to get herself back under control so she could continue. Trying to keep a straight face and keep her laughter under control, she finished, "Tank…told him…he was…there to mutilate…the moron who told his son…he was getting a whipping when he got home."

The last was said in a big rush, and then she was off in another fit of giggles.

By now the rest of us were holding our sides because we could just picture an irate Tank dealing with the hapless principal.

Lula finished with saying, "Tank took a step toward the little creep, and the guy jumped up and started flapping his arms and squawking. When the door opened and this little old lady stepped into the room and asked what was wrong, Fried Fred—the principal, pushed her in front of him and told Tank he was intruding and if he didn't leave, his secretary was going to have to escort him out. Well, now all the people in that meeting are grumbling and not liking what Fred said or what he was doing."

Tina shook her head. "I hope he pounded the scum into the ground."

Lula grinned. "No…but when the principal took a swing at him, he lifted him by the neck of his shirt into the air and shook him before tossing him back in his chair with the comment he hoped it shook some sense into him. And then Tank told him if that bully went after his little girl again he'd be sorry. Well then Fred piped up and said that his boy wasn't a bully."

Lula fanned herself. "I can just imagine the steam coming out of Tank's ears as he strode toward Fred. Upshot of it was, one of the members of the board spoke up and asked Tankie who he was. When he told him, the man looked at Fred and shook his head and then told him he was a poor dumb bastard taking on one of Ranger's men. Of course, Fred has no clue who Ranger is or what Tank is capable of, so he said something snide. I tried to get Tank to tell me what, but he said it wasn't fit for a lady's ears. Anyway, upshot of the whole shebang is Tank carried Fred in a fireman's carry out in front of the school and ran him up the flag pole before getting in his SUV and leaving. None of the people in the meeting would let him down, and his secretary said she quit on her way out. It was over three hours later when the cops were called and Fred got hisself arrested by Gaspick for causing a riot."

I grinned and turned my gaze to where Tina was nursing Lily. Just as I was getting ready to make a comment, Savi came running up to her mother in tears.

Tina sat forward and asked, "What's wrong, baby?"

Savi looked up at her mother, her chin wobbling. "Caitlyn stole my Barbie doll and ripped her head off. She said only babies play with dolls."

I could see that anger flashing in Tina's eyes as she raised her voice and called, " _Santos!_ "

Lester came over along with the rest of the guys. "What's up, gorgeous?"

Tina nodded to Savi, but before she could say anything more, Gabriel sauntered over and handed Savi the very Barbie she had been talking about.

Her eyes rounded as she said, "She's all fixed. How did you do it?"

Gabe ducked his head as his cheeks turned pink. "It was nothing."

Savi threw her arms around him and said, "Thank you, Gabe. You're the best."

The color deepened for a second, and then he seemed to enjoy the hug.

Lester held out his hand, and the two did a complicated handshake. "Thank you for looking out for my little girl."

Gabe nodded. He turned back to Savi and said, "You won't have to worry about Caitlyn. I don't think she'll be giving you problems anymore."

Kye frowned. "Why do you say that, son?"

Gabe grinned up at his dad. "Well, when I followed her to get the Barbie back, I caught her playing with her own Barbie and took a picture." He shrugged. "I told her that unless she wanted it posted all over school, she'd leave Savi alone."

Kye frowned. "I'm not sure…"

Gabe handed his phone to Kye and shook his head. "I was bluffing…but she doesn't need to know that."

Kye gave him a nod. "All right."

Ethan and Remy came running up to us, and they both bent over to catch their breaths.

Tina frowned. "What's up, you two?"

They looked up and grinned. Remy said, "We followed Gabe." They turned to their friend. "You'll never guess who stopped by to see Caitlyn after you left."

Gabe's eyebrow rose. "Who?"

The boys looked at each other and grinned even more before Ethan continued where his brother left off. "Ivy. Caitlyn was giving her all of the information about the winning science project." They both burst out laughing.

Tina's eyes narrowed, "All right, you two, what are you up to?"

The boys gave the appearance of trying to look innocent. It was Remy who answered her by saying, "Uhm…gee, not a thing, Mom."

Tina's eyes narrowed. Sarcasm dripped from her tone as she said, "Right. I believe that all right."

The two laughed, and then Ethan said, "Well, the only one that's supposed to know all of that is Caitlyn's mom because she's the teacher. She can get in a lot of trouble if people knew that she told Caitlyn."

Tina's eyes narrowed even more. "Keep talking."

They lowered their heads and kicked around at the ground.

Tina said, "Spill it."

Ethan looked up, glaring at his brother before turning to his mother and saying, "Well, Miss Johnson was out walking her dog, and we sort of engineered it so that she came over and heard the two girls talking. Since she's on the judges' committee, she went up to the house and told Caitlyn's mother that she couldn't be on the committee anymore and she'd make sure she wasn't on any others as well. When Miss Johnson left, Caitlyn was called into the house, and we heard her being grounded for six months. Then Mrs. Barnyard…I mean Barnhardt told Ivy she couldn't come over anymore."

I could hear Ranger's chuckle, and then he leaned down to whisper in my ear, "For ten-year-olds, they're pretty sharp."

I grinned up at him. "If you think these guys are something, then what about Ryker and Sophie?"

He kissed me before saying, "Yeah, and if the trend continues, I can't wait to see what Jax and Lily come up with."

Lester looked at us with a narrowed-eyed stare. "What are you two talking about?"

We turned to him with blank looks on our faces as if we had no clue what he was talking about.

Les laughed and said, "Ethan Shepard, Remington Lee, Savannah Yardley-Rose, Ryker Emmanuel, Sophie Jane. Come here and gang up on your Uncle Carlos and Aunt Stephanie." He turned to us and made a funny face. "I'd add Jaxon Ryan and Liliana Grace, but since they're only three months old, I'll give them a pass."

Ranger chuckled wryly as he straightened. "That's all right. I think Julie, Miranda Rose, and Derek Adam can take them."

Lester grinned. "More like become the ringleaders, and then we'd all be in trouble."

Cam playfully pushed Lester aside and made his way over to where Alex was sitting. His eyes got round as he took in the glass of water she had in her hand. "Uhm, honeybun, that isn't water from Les and Tina's kitchen…is it?"

Alex laughed. "You don't really believe that, do you?"

Cam looked undecided. "Well, the last three times you were pregnant, it was six weeks to the day after we'd visited these two when you found out."

Alex looked at the glass in her hands a bit dubiously before turning back to Cam and weakly protesting, "It's impossible to get pregnant from drinking water."

Thor threw back his head and laughed. "That's what Rina and I thought eight months ago."

We all looked to Rina, who was exactly eight months pregnant.

Alex's eyes widened. "That's right. It was just six weeks after the last get-together when you came to see me." She bit her lip and looked at Cam.

Cam's eyes widened a bit more. "What's that look for?"

Alex looked at the water in her glass, and then her face paled as she set it down. "I'm suddenly not feeling so great."

Tina threw back her head and laughed. "Now why would you be saying that?"

I couldn't help the smile that was plastered to my face. Glancing up, I caught Ranger's questioning glance, and then the other shoe dropped and my eyes widened.

Lula started laughing. "Oh, that's just priceless. If you are pregnant, you might end up with an even dozen. Although the chances of having four sets of triplets is a bit high."

Alex smiled weakly. "Not as high as it should be. I'm a triplet myself…and I have nine brothers and two sisters."

Lula's eyes grew round. "Oh, boy!"

Celia shook her head. "I don't think any of you realize the ramifications. It wasn't just Alex that had a glass of water six weeks ago when we got together for Lily and Jax's christening."

I had already connected the dots when I saw Ranger looking at me with a questioning look. I turned to look at the others and saw that they were starting to realize the magnitude of what might be happening.

Lula's mouth was opening and closing like a fish, but no words were coming out.

Tina looked at the rest of us smugly. "Lucky for me, I'm immune for a while." She looked down at Lily. "At least for a few more months."

Alex chuckled. "Why would you say that?"

"Because I'm breastfeeding. I can't get pregnant while I'm breastfeeding."

Once again, the rest of us were smiling as we looked at her.

Her gaze went to Alex, and she looked almost panicked as she demanded, "That's right, isn't it?"

Alex shook her head. "Sorry to burst your bubble, but it's very possible to get pregnant when you are breastfeeding. After all, Stephanie did."

Tina looked at me with almost a pleading expression on her face.

I smiled. "Alex, if you have any openings this next week, I think the lot of us would like to make an appointment."

Alex nodded. "No problem. I'll fit you all in just as soon as I see whether or not I've been a victim of the water."

Julie came over to join us, and her eyes lit up when she spotted the pitcher of water on the table. "Oh, great! I'm dying of thirst."

Ranger moved with lightning reflexes and tossed the contents of the pitcher onto the grass. "I'm sure there is juice or soda in the fridge, but whatever you do, never drink the water at Uncle Lester's."

She looked at him kind of funny but shrugged and said, "Okay. I'll go and grab some from the fridge."

As she moved off, Ranger took a relieved breath before he shook his head. "She's too young to have a baby, and I'm too young to be a grandfather."

Everyone laughed.

 **And they lived happily ever after…**

 _Oh, and Tina was in fact pregnant with another set of triplets, as was Alex. Rina had a little boy, Celia had a daughter, Lula had a son, and Stephanie…she had one of each._


End file.
